For those many fans of the Masterpiece Theatre televison series, Downton Abbey, and for those interested in British history at the turn of the twentieth century, this is a fascinating look at one of the great houses and great families of the English aristocracy during a period of enormous social change.
I have enjoyed the television series but I think perhaps the story of the real people of Highclere Castle might be even more exciting than Julian Fellowes's fictional family. Using Highclere, the ancestral home of the Carnarvons, as the setting for Downton, was like scattering clues to lead the curious from one to the other. The author, the wife of Almina's great grandson, has the advantage of access to extensive family and estate records: letters, documents and photographs, in recreating Almina's story.
Almina Wombwell, the natural daughter and heiress of the wealthy industrialist Alfred de Rothschild, married the 5th Earl of Carnarvon in 1895. The Rothschild millions resuscitated the Carnarvon fortune and enabled the young couple to live at the forefront of English high society. Although Lord Carnarvon clearly could not afford to marry without taking money into consideration, it appears the couple were also in love and that the marriage was a happy one for both.
What makes their story intriguing however is how they weathered adversity and used their money not to insulate themselves from change but to deal with it. When war was declared in August 1914, the Countess was already preparing to turn Highclere into a military hospital. The Countess organized, equipped, staffed and administered the hospital out of her own pocket, and established a standard of medical care that saved many lives. Other members of the family also contributed to the war effort. The Earl was a consultant on aviation and aerial photography; his younger brother Aubrey served on the front lines and used his language skills and knowledge of eastern Europe as a negotiator; and his son and heir served in India and the Near East.
The Earl of Carnarvon, who suffered from weak lungs all his life, first visited Egypt in 1889. After his marriage, he could afford to indulge his fascination with ancient Egypt, and became a knowledgeable collector. He and his wife became regular winter visitors when his doctors recommended a warm, dry climate for his health. Eventually he met and became the patron of Howard Carter, who was establishing a formidable reputation as an archaeologist. For years he funded Carter's excavations with meager results. But in October 1922, after agreeing to one final season, Carter and Carnarvon achieved their dream and discovered the untouched tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamun.
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