Lady Cynthia Mary Evelyn Asquith (née Charteris; 27 September 1887 – 31 March 1960) was an English writer and socialite, known for her ghost stories and diaries.[1] She also wrote novels, edited a number of anthologies, wrote for children and covered the British Royal family.
In 1913, Asquith met D. H. Lawrence in Margate and became a friend and correspondent.[7] She took a position as secretary to the Peter Pan creator J. M. Barrie,[8][9] with whom she became close friends, continuing to work for him until his death in 1937. Barrie left most of his estate to her, except for the Peter Pan works.[10] Author L. P. Hartley became a lifelong friend after they met in the early 1920s.
In 1957, Asquith appeared as a contestant in the ITV Quiz show 64,000 Question (hosted by Jerry Desmonde) where she won the top prize of £3,200 answering questions on the works of Jane Austen.[13]
John Michael Asquith (1911–1937), who suffered mental problems and died in an institution.[16]
Michael Henry Asquith (1914–2004),[17] who married in 1938 Diana Eveline Montagu Battye, daughter of Lt.-Col. Perceval Lawrence Montagu Battye. They divorced in 1952; he married secondly Helga Brigitta Ebba Elizabeth Ritter, daughter of Dr Walther Sigmund Casimir Ritter, in 1953.[18]
This Mortal Coil (1947), stories: "In a Nutshell", "The White Moth", "The Corner Shop", "'God Grante That She Lye Stille'", "The Playfellow", "The Nurse Never Told", "The Lovely Voice", "The First Night", "The Follower"
Haply I May Remember (1950)
What Dreams May Come (1951), stories (contents the same as This Mortal Coil, but with "The Follower" omitted and "The Nurse Never Told" retitled as "From What Beginnings?")
^MacKenzie, Raymond N. (2004). "Asquith [née Charteris], Lady Cynthia Mary Evelyn (1887–1960), writer". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/30480. Retrieved 22 February 2021. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
^Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage. Debrett's Peerage Limited. 2018. p. 1213. ISBN978-1-870520-73-7. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
^ abc"Wemyss, Earl of (S, 1633)". cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Heraldic Media Limited. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
^See Mark Kinkead-Weekes, D. H. Lawrence: Triumph to Exile, 1912–1922 (Cambridge, 1996), pp. 69 ff.
^Andrew Birkin, J. M. Barrie & the Lost Boys, Constable, 1979; revised edition, Yale University Press, 2003.
^Kevin Telfer,"Captain Scott and J M Barrie: an unlikely friendship", Telegraph, 9 March 2012.
^Chaney, Lisa. Hide-and-Seek with Angels - A Life of J. M. Barrie, Hutchinson, 2005.
^Mike Ashley and William Contento, The Supernatural Index: A Listing of Fantasy, Supernatural, Occult, Weird, and Horror Anthologies. Greenwood Publishing, 1995. ISBN0313240302, pp. 728–729.
^Atkinson, Damian (2018). The Selected Letters of Charles Whibley: Scholar and Critic. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 152. ISBN978-1-5275-1294-8. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
^Kidd, Charles; Shaw, Christine (2008). Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage 2008. Debrett's. p. 1103. ISBN978-1-870520-80-5. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
^Fleming, Ann (1985). The Letters of Ann Fleming. Collins Harvill. p. 27. ISBN978-0-00-217059-8. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
Lady Cynthia Asquith at Library of Congress, with 47 library catalogue records
July 20, 2023
lady, cynthia, asquith, lady, cynthia, mary, evelyn, asquith, née, charteris, september, 1887, march, 1960, english, writer, socialite, known, ghost, stories, diaries, also, wrote, novels, edited, number, anthologies, wrote, children, covered, british, royal, . Lady Cynthia Mary Evelyn Asquith nee Charteris 27 September 1887 31 March 1960 was an English writer and socialite known for her ghost stories and diaries 1 She also wrote novels edited a number of anthologies wrote for children and covered the British Royal family Lady Cynthia AsquithBornCynthia Mary Evelyn Charteris 1887 09 27 27 September 1887Clouds House East Knoyle Wiltshire EnglandDied31 March 1960 1960 03 31 aged 72 Oxford EnglandNationalityEnglishOccupationWriterYears active1926 1960SpouseHerbert Asquith m 1910 died 1947 wbr Children3ParentsHugo Richard Charteris 11th Earl of Wemyss Mary Constance Wyndham Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Works 4 1 As editor 5 Adaptations 6 See also 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External linksEarly life EditLady Cynthia was born at Clouds House East Knoyle Wiltshire on 27 September 1887 2 one of seven children of Hugo Richard Charteris 11th Earl of Wemyss 1857 1937 and Mary Constance Wyndham of The Souls fame 3 Among her siblings were Hugo Francis Charteris Lord Elcho who married Lady Violet Manners the daughter of Henry Manners 8th Duke of Rutland and was killed in action in the Great War 4 Guy Lawrence Charteris Colin Charteris who died young Lady Mary Charteris wife of Capt Algernon Walter Strickland and after his death John George Lyon Yvo Alan Charteris also killed in action during the Great War 5 and Lady Irene Charteris wife of Ivor Windsor Clive 2nd Earl of Plymouth 6 Her paternal grandparents were Francis Charteris 10th Earl of Wemyss and his first wife Lady Anne Frederica Anson second daughter of Thomas Anson 1st Earl of Lichfield Her maternal grandparents were Capt Hon Percy Scawen Wyndham MP for Cumberland West second son of George Wyndham 1st Baron Leconfield and the former Madeleine Eden Campbell sixth daughter of Maj Gen Sir Guy Campbell 1st Baronet 6 Career EditIn 1913 Asquith met D H Lawrence in Margate and became a friend and correspondent 7 She took a position as secretary to the Peter Pan creator J M Barrie 8 9 with whom she became close friends continuing to work for him until his death in 1937 Barrie left most of his estate to her except for the Peter Pan works 10 Author L P Hartley became a lifelong friend after they met in the early 1920s Asquith became known for editing The Ghost Book an anthology of supernatural fiction including work by D H Lawrence Algernon Blackwood Arthur Machen Oliver Onions and May Sinclair 11 One of Asquith s stories The Follower was adapted for BBC Radio along with others by Algernon Blackwood Marjorie Bowen and Noel Streatfeild all were later reprinted in the Cecil Madden anthology My Grimmest Nightmare 1935 1 She contributed to the screenplay of the 1937 film Dreaming Lips which starred Elisabeth Bergner 12 In 1957 Asquith appeared as a contestant in the ITV Quiz show 64 000 Question hosted by Jerry Desmonde where she won the top prize of 3 200 answering questions on the works of Jane Austen 13 Personal life EditOn 28 July 1910 Lady Cynthia married Herbert Asquith 1881 1947 second son of H H Asquith the Liberal Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916 with whom he is sometimes confused 14 They had three children 15 John Michael Asquith 1911 1937 who suffered mental problems and died in an institution 16 Michael Henry Asquith 1914 2004 17 who married in 1938 Diana Eveline Montagu Battye daughter of Lt Col Perceval Lawrence Montagu Battye They divorced in 1952 he married secondly Helga Brigitta Ebba Elizabeth Ritter daughter of Dr Walther Sigmund Casimir Ritter in 1953 18 Simon Roland Anthony Asquith 1919 1973 who married in 1942 Vivien Lawrence Jones daughter of Sir Lawrence Jones 5th Baronet and Lady Evelyn Alice Grey a daughter of Albert Grey 4th Earl Grey 19 Lady Cynthia s husband died in Bath on 5 August 1947 aged 66 15 and Lady Cynthia herself on 31 March 1960 aged 72 6 Works EditThe Duchess of York 1927 biography The Spring House 1936 novel Dreaming Lips 1937 screenplay One Sparkling Wave 1943 novel This Mortal Coil 1947 stories In a Nutshell The White Moth The Corner Shop God Grante That She Lye Stille The Playfellow The Nurse Never Told The Lovely Voice The First Night The Follower Haply I May Remember 1950 What Dreams May Come 1951 stories contents the same as This Mortal Coil but with The Follower omitted and The Nurse Never Told retitled as From What Beginnings Remember and be Glad 1952 Portrait of Barrie 1954 Married to Tolstoy 1960 biography Thomas Hardy at Max Gate 1969 As editor Edit The Flying Carpet 1925 Treasure Ship 1926 The Ghost Book 1927 The Black Cap 1928 Shudders 1929 The Children s Cargo 1930 When Churchyards Yawn 1931 My Grimmest Nightmare 1935 The Second Ghost Book 1952 The Third Ghost Book 1955 Adaptations Edit God Grante That She Lye Stille first published in When Churchyards Yawn was adapted in 1961 by Robert Hardy Andrews as an episode of the anthology TV series Thriller 20 See also EditList of horror fiction authors List of science fiction editorsReferences Edit a b Richard Dalby The Virago Book of Ghost Stories Virago London ISBN 0 86068 810 0 1987 p 236 MacKenzie Raymond N 2004 Asquith nee Charteris Lady Cynthia Mary Evelyn 1887 1960 writer Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online ed Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 ref odnb 30480 Retrieved 22 February 2021 Subscription or UK public library membership required Debrett s Peerage and Baronetage Debrett s Peerage Limited 2018 p 1213 ISBN 978 1 870520 73 7 Retrieved 11 September 2020 Casualty Details CWGC Casualty Details CWGC a b c Wemyss Earl of S 1633 cracroftspeerage co uk Heraldic Media Limited Retrieved 11 September 2020 See Mark Kinkead Weekes D H Lawrence Triumph to Exile 1912 1922 Cambridge 1996 pp 69 ff Andrew Birkin J M Barrie amp the Lost Boys Constable 1979 revised edition Yale University Press 2003 Kevin Telfer Captain Scott and J M Barrie an unlikely friendship Telegraph 9 March 2012 Chaney Lisa Hide and Seek with Angels A Life of J M Barrie Hutchinson 2005 Mike Ashley and William Contento The Supernatural Index A Listing of Fantasy Supernatural Occult Weird and Horror Anthologies Greenwood Publishing 1995 ISBN 0313240302 pp 728 729 Film Reviews Sydney Morning Herald Sydney 25 October 1937 p 8 web 17 April 2013 Davis Clifford 18 May 1957 Lady Cynthia tries for 3 200 In the 64 000 Question show Daily Mirtor p 6 Retrieved 22 January 2022 Oxford and Asquith Earl of UK 1925 cracroftspeerage co uk Heraldic Media Limited Retrieved 11 September 2020 a b Mr Herbert Asquith Poet and Novelist The Times 8 August 1947 p 7 Beauman Nicola 1987 16 John Cynthia Asquith London Hamish Hamilton pp 134 148 ISBN 0241123682 Atkinson Damian 2018 The Selected Letters of Charles Whibley Scholar and Critic Cambridge Scholars Publishing p 152 ISBN 978 1 5275 1294 8 Retrieved 11 September 2020 Kidd Charles Shaw Christine 2008 Debrett s Peerage amp Baronetage 2008 Debrett s p 1103 ISBN 978 1 870520 80 5 Retrieved 11 September 2020 Fleming Ann 1985 The Letters of Ann Fleming Collins Harvill p 27 ISBN 978 0 00 217059 8 Retrieved 11 September 2020 IMDBFurther reading EditCynthia Asquith Lady Cynthia Asquith Diaries 1915 1918 Hutchinson 1968 Nicola Beauman Cynthia Asquith Hamish Hamilton 1987 Julian Fane Best Friends Memories of David and Rachel Cecil Cynthia Asquith L P Hartley and some others Sinclair Stevenson 1990 1 Tuck Donald H 1974 The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy Chicago Advent p 23 ISBN 0 911682 20 1 External links EditAsquith Lady Cynthia in The Encyclopedia of Fantasy Cynthia Asquith at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database Lady Cynthia Asquith at Library of Congress with 47 library catalogue records Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Lady Cynthia Asquith amp oldid 1154941818, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
