Published in Windlesora 17 (1999)
© WLHG
The marriage of Amédée d’Harcourt and Sophia Harcourt on 12 June 1800 united two illustrious families, one French, one English, who traced their origins to Bernard, a Viking, who settled in Normandy in the eighth century. Yvo de Harcourt had accompanied William the Conqueror to England and in the intervening centuries the English Harcourts and French d’Harcourts had, through a combination of intelligence and ability, served their monarchs as ambassadors, generals, field marshals and chancellors. The memoirs and diaries of Amédée and Sophia which form the basis of this book cover the periods 1789-1809 and 1833-1846, have been arranged in five parts, each of which has an excellent introduction to provide historical context. They are well written and give the impression that both authors combine keen observation with an informed interest in historical and social affairs.
Amédée’s memoirs begin in 1789, the year of the French revolution, when at the age of eighteen he was serving in the regiment of the Besangon Artillery. We follow his progress as he leaves the family home in 1792 with a hundred louis in his hand to join the Princes’ Army. He accompanies his uncle the Duc d’Harcourt to London where there are some 7000 French émigrés. In 1793 as a volunteer without uniform or rank Amédée sails with the Brigade of Dragoons under the command of General William Harcourt to join the Duke of York in the campaign in the Low Countries 1793-95. His shrewd comments on this ill-fated campaign arc of considerable interest to a military historian. General William Harcourt was impressed with Amédée’s ability and made him his ‘aide de camp’. This position gave him access to the highest circles and led to a series of interesting commissions. In 1799, having [nally overcome her father’s opposition, his marriage to Sophia is postponed for a year whilst he first accompanied General Don on an incognito mission to Holland and then accompanied Captain Popham on a special mission to Emperor Paul of Russia. His account of the outward journey to St Petersburg in (the depths of winter and life in the Russian court is fascinating. Within five days of his return in Tune 1800 he married Sophia and General Harcourt lent them St Leonards house for their honeymoon. A year later he again set sail visiting Minorca, Malta, Sicily and Gibraltar, His account of the three years he spent in Ireland 1803-06 what he describes as military reconnaissance is an interesting social document He comments in 1806 “so Ireland must go on them suffering oppression and England revolt, until the moment when Parliament will find a way to satisfy at the same time both justice and its own security”. The three years he spent in South Africa 1806-09 were evidently very unhappy but his account is valuable for its description of life in the Cape at this time of transition from Dutch to British rule. Amédée’s memoirs end in 1809 but it is known he served under Wellington in the Spanish campaign and retired from the army in 1812 with the rank of Major General.
After the war Amédée and Sophia lived in the Dower House of St Leonard’s Hill during the summer, and in France in the winter. Sophia continued this practice after the death of her husband in a riding accident in 1831 until her own death in 1846. Sophia and her elder son William took up residence at St Leonard’s Hill after the death of William, 3rd Earl of Harcourt and his wife Mary. Throughout the period covered by Sophia’s diary she enjoyed close contact with the court at Windsor. The marriage of her son William in 1837 to Elizabeth, daughter of Colonel Cavendish, Equerry in Waiting, and sister to one of the young Queen Victoria’s Maid of Honour strengthened the court connection. In 1841 Elizabeth was invited by the Queen to take her baby to the Castle to meet the Princess Royal and later that year Sophia is delighted to record a visit by the Queen and Prince Albert to St Leonard’s Hill. There are a number of references to the school at Clewer Green which owed its foundation to the benefaction of William 3rd Earl of Harcourt and his wife Mary. It also appears that Sophia attended Clewer church.
During the six months Sophia spent in France each year she lived with her married daughter, Mary, and visited her younger son George and his wife Paule. She took a keen interest in French politics. With her ‘English family’ and ‘French family’ the possibility of war between the two countries alarmed her and she writes ‘Thank God’ in 1844 when this danger receded.
Sophia regularly records details of her annual journeys between England and France. One must admire the fortitude with which, even at the advanced age of 75, she faces the vagaries of sea travel which could mean a delay of five or six days at Dover or Calais waiting for favourable conditions. However, on land the influence of the railways was beginning to be felt and she refers to journeys to London. In 1838 she went by railroad to Coventry and, despite the fact that “our engine took a wrong direction at Rugby”, which occasioned a two hour delay, she still considered it to be “one of the most wonderful inventions”.
We owe a considerable debt to the editors, Sheila and Pat Rooney, for bringing together in this interesting book the previously unpublished Memoirs and Diary of Amédée and Sophia d’Harcourt. Due to their social position Amédee and Sophia were well-placed to comment on military, political and Royal affairs in a period of considerable historical interest. There is the added advantage that in Amédée’s account we are looking at England through the eyes of a Frenchman whilst Sophia with her ‘French family’ could view France through English eyes.
Joyce Sampson
ROONEY, Sheila and Pat, ‘The Harcourt Journals‘, Windsor Local History Publications Group, 1998 170 pp 44 illustrations 4 maps footnotes and index. Available from bookshops or the authors at 9 Illingworth, St Leonard’s Hill, Windsor SLA AUP £15.99
Windsor Local History Group 