I received an invitation today with my latest edition of The Spectator, to celebrate the launch of a new biography, “Jennie Churchill, Winston’s American Mother“, by Anne Sebba.
It boasts that she was “outspoken, dazzlingly beautiful and had 200 lovers.” And although she married three times, the real love of her life was her son Winston.
Wikipedia charts many of her reputed lovers, including royalty. Throughout her life and all three marriages, Jennie conducted extra-marital affairs, initially to strengthen the social and political position of her first husband, Lord Randolph Churchill. Her third husband was three years younger than Winston.
Yet she seemed to get away with her promiscuous life, retaining her title Lady Randolph Churchill. Even when the title was no longer officially hers, she was so welcome in royal circles that no one seemed to object.
Could you handle 200 lovers and, if so, do you think you would still be highly regarded by your circle of friends and colleagues? I doubt it, can you imagine the complications? And while it’s not a lifestyle we encourage today, it is endlessly fascinating to read about those who have done so.
Lady Churchill’s life was certainly colourful and extraordinary, especially compared to the privileged “It” girls of today.
This book is sure to be a best seller for Christmas, I shall certainly add it to my list. I just hope it doesn’t lead me astray …..
Not a trace of envy there from you, Lady Ellee.
“Ummmmmmm,” she said wistfully …..
No, I couldn’t. Not that I’m likely to get the chance! But she stood by Lord Randolph when he told her he had syphilis, didn’t she? So there must have been a lot of good in her.
I guess it was a sign of the times that she suffered no social consequences for her behaviour. A very busy lady. Wouldn’t we all like to be desirable to that number of men, even if we didn’t act upon it?
I love your story…perhaps you are even tempted to come to this amazing dinner at the Churchill Hotel? Best of all I like your comment
“This book is sure to be a best seller for Christmas, I shall certainly add it to my list. I just hope it doesn’t lead me astray …” which i shall add to my website!
When I gave some lectures on a cruise recenty a man in the audience asked me what percentage of Jennie’s 200 lovers I identified with. I told him mathematics was never my strong point. anne
In reference to the “social circle’s” reaction to someone taking on more than one lover, let alone 200 lovers, yes, it may make a few heads turn away, but it would make you infinitely more fascinating a person without question. Isn’t that more imporant?
lol Elle,
not sure what the hollywood porn record is for most lovers non stop, but I guess many a woman could and would (or even has) ‘handled’ 200 lovers in a lifetime if not in a night.
Me, I must confess I would need at least a metaphorical month of Sundays (or 200 nights) to love 200 women
Anne, I am very tempted to come, it sounds a fabulous evening, and I am very flattered that you will add my comment to your website. I would certainly like to meet you too, the five course menu and Pol Roger champagne are very tempting.
Siskenyon, I think women like Lady Churchill were of a certain genre, you had to have an abundance of charm and intelligence to avoid being labelled a slut. It’s ironic that while our society is more sexually liberated today, this kind of promiscuity is still condemned, the focus of our society is in promoting family values. At the end of the day, her son Winston was her shining light, so she never lost sight of that. What a complicated and fascinating woman she was.
I remember reading a biography of the Lady when I was in my twenties. I don’t remember, thank goodness, the statistics on her love life! she was an extraordinary woman.
Oh go on, going a bit astray can be fun.. just watch your back.
Frankly, I’d settle for just one…
She’s not bad looking, is she?!?
Wasn’t Winston Churchill born in the lavatories at Blenheim Palace..?
Reading your political blog and about books reminded me… I found Jeffrey Archer’s blog a couple of months ago:
http://jeffreyarchers.blogspot.com
it’s really just a record of what charity dinners he went to that week but worth a look if you’re into that kind of thing.
I’m writing my memoirs as well so wish me luck!!
Gledwood, I look forward to reading your memoirs. And you are right, Lady Churchill certainly was a stunner.
I read Jeffrey Archer’s blog from time to time, he certainly gets invited to lots of great events still, no doubt about that, he’s always at a first night for something or other, a guest speaker on a cruise, hosting a charity auction, at an art exhibition, a new play. He’s done ok, despite everything.
The secret is to let the biggest one go first – you don’t feel the rest after that.
Errr. Annabel Chong. (Sorry)
Probably greater than the number of men could do the opposite.
The remarkable thing by the the standards of contemporary (and especially 50 years ago) American culture is not so much that she had that many lovers but that she had nearly all of them while married only three times, while at the pinnacle of British society, and while at least some of her activity, if probably not the true dimensions of it, were widely known or supposed.
There are two or three reasons for this. Yes, the “Edwardian” period following the Victorian one, was a time of greatly relaxed standards regarding fidelity, particularly in the upper classes in Britain, as had e.g. the “Restoration” period following the Roundhead or Puritian ascendencies in the late 17th century.
More generally, in British and French aristocratic circles where arranged marriages were the almost invariable rule until recent times, extra maarital affairs for BOTH spouses were much more accepted than now, especially when the wife had equal or nearly equal social status in her own right and particularly when she brought in much or most of the money – as was the case with Lady Randolph Churchill.
Still, Jennie Churchill took it very far for someone at her level.
Finally though I’d like to note that there is a strong element of acceptance of cuckoldry by some elements of British society, especially upper class class society. It may not be unrelated to the rather large amounts of homosexuality or bisexuality there as well. Male esthetes and all. In Britain this was not and is not thought to be an exclusively gay thing, and has at various times and places been associated with the liesure class, and high status and “refinement”. I think it also has something to do with the code of male chivalry, which has nowhere been more pronounced than in England. The code involves an ethic of one degree or another of male self sacrifice for the beautiful and perhaps unattainable or only partly attainable woman, who is worshiped and never really fully possessed. This can lead rather easily towards allowing this “goddess”, who one is not really fully worthy of, to have extraordinary and even one sided freedom. [I think this is also a good part of the reason why feminism has gone further in the Anglosphere than anywhere else, including other European countries.]
When that sort of male attitude, or it’s more extreme form, is married to a great beauty and unconventional thinker, in an era of greatly loosened sexual morality lead by the example of the Monarch himself, King Edward (one of Jeannie’s lovers), one can get a Jeannie Churchill.
So – what I’m suggesting is that an essential enabling (but not alone sufficient) reason for the phenomenon of Lady Jeannie Churchill was that her first husband (Lord Randolph Churchill who as a younger son of the Duke would not become Duke and whose son (Sir Winston Churchill) as twice removed would not become even an honorary Lord), was a permissive and probably willing cuckold (male sexual submissive), who very likely encouraged her sexual activities and got his own sexual charge from them.
So ladies if you want to follow in Jennie’s footsteps 1) be really beautiful and witty to boot; and 2) more importantly, marry a socially prominent willing cuckold. They’re a lot harder to find in America, but are by no means non existent (particularly I think in gen X and esp. Y’s with their often rather thorough feminist indoctrination).
Dougjn, it sounds like Lady Churchill was very much in control. I really must read the book, she was an exceptional woman.
I wonder what a “modern” psychology might have to say about Lady Churchill’s many liaisons?
Nancy, some women can get away with it, others are regarded as sluts. I’m sure Lady Churchill’s charm would have won over the psychologists too. She obviously needed a lot of excitement and attention in her life, and, sex, of course.
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