Dorothy Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington
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Dorothy Violet Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington (21 August 1885–11 July 1956), styled Lady Gerald Wellesley between 1914 and 1943, was an English socialite, author, poet and literary editor. She was born Dorothy Violet Ashton at Maidenhead.
She was the daughter of Robert Ashton, and married Lord Gerald Wellesley (later 7th Duke of Wellington), on 30 April 1914. After her marriage she used the name Dorothy Wellesley when she wrote.
She was the author of more than ten books, mostly of poetry, but including also Sir George Goldie, Founder of Nigeria (1934), and Far Have I Travelled (1952). She was editor for Hogarth Press of the Hogarth Living Poets series. She also edited The Annual in 1929.
She was one of the group of women reputed as lesbian lovers of Vita Sackville-West; they travelled together. She was also close to Hilda Matheson (1888-1940), another of Vita's circle, and shared a Sussex cottage with her from 1928. She was introduced to W. B. Yeats in the mid-1930s, and they developed an intense relationship in 1936, editing a book together.
She had two children:
- Arthur Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, b. 2nd July 1915
- Lady Elizabeth Wellesley, b. 26th December 1918.
She separated from her husband before he succeeded to the Dukedom of Wellington, but they never divorced. She died at Withyham in Sussex.
Reference
- Letters on Poetry from W. B. Yeats to Dorothy Wellesley (1940, OUP) edited by Kathleen Raine