11 minute read
Partners in West Cork crime
Partners in crime in West Cork
In her continuing series of literary rambles around Ireland and Britain Lorna Hogg visits some of the locations made famous by the hugely successful partnership of Edith Somerville and her second cousin Violet Martin
Edith, left, and Violet. Edith wrote under her own name. Violet picked the name Ross, after a distant ancestor, and her family home in Co. Clare. Edith Somerville: When her mother died, Edith took on the running of the house, along with her sister Hildegard. She also helped the family financially – her brothers were often away on military duty.
One of the best known TV series of the 1980s was The Irish R.M, starring Peter Bowles and Bryan Murray, plus a host of top Irish actors. The series detailed the adventures of a Irish Resident Magistrate in Victorian Ireland. The book – and linked sequels, were co-authored by Edith Somerville, and her cousin, Violet Martin. Somewhat ironically, however, the life stories of the two women turned out to be equally, if not more interesting than their novels.
Edith Somerville was born on May 2nd 1858, in Corfu, where her father was a serving British Army Officer. When the family returned to their Irish roots, dating back several centuries, they settled into Drishane House, a family residence in West Carbery, near Castletownsend in West Cork. Edith, the eldest in a family of seven, was from the start, a strong character. She was very much the responsible elder sister in a family which encouraged independence and bravery – in all its members. Edith loved hunting, and rode well side-saddle, as was the (dangerous) norm then for women. She attended Alexandra College in Dublin for a short while, and also studied art, for which she had considerable talent, in Paris and at the Westminster School of Art. She was also happy to work – and sold drawings to The Illustrated Graphic and Ladies Pictorial Magazines, and published some short stories. and created a career for herself. However, in those days of course, women’s chief goal was marriage – to a man who would suppport them in the style of their background. As a young woman, Edith was pursued by two young men – she was known to be in love with at least one of them, but her family deemed them both `unsuitable.’ Nothing came of either possible match – much to her sadness. By her mid twenties, she had decided on her future. She would not marry – but write, make money at it – both to gain independence, and also help her family.
When, in 1886 she met her second cousin Violet, after an initial lack of enthusiasm, the pair found they had much in common, including a desire for financial independence. Violet also had published some of her work, and they decided to combine their talents, as co-authors. The outgoing, forthright and, it has been claimed, sometimes reckless, Edith wrote under her own name. Violet picked the name Ross, after a distant ancestor, and her family home in Co. Clare. One of her forebears had changed religion in order to marry, and the family had resulting financial challenges.
They did, however, have a wide social circle, including W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory. The two young women had different personalities and beliefs. Edith was social, outgoing, witty and adventurous, and had Irish Nationalist sympathies. Violet was more restrained, conventional and a staunch Unionist. However, both had grown up in families in which men had managed money badly. From an early age, Edith was aware of how much this had impacted on their families.
One letter from Edith to Violet remarked ‘you and I will take Carbery and grind its bones to make our money!’ They started in 1889 with Àn Irish Cousin, under pen names. A trip to Etaples, and the South of France followed – where they started on Some Adventures of an Irish R.M. – and went on to co-author fourteen books. When her mother died, Edith took on the running of the house, along with her sister Hildegard. She also helped the family financially – her brothers were often away on military duty. Violet came to live with Edith at Drishane in the early 1900s, and Edith joined her at Ross House in summer months.
Peter Bowles starred in the hugely successful TV series The Irish RM
Some Adventures of an Irish RM was later followed by Further Adventures of the Irish RM; and Mr. Knox’s Country .However, they did not make their fortunes from those books, apparently selling the rights before the books became best sellers. Edith and Violet worked hard for their success, facing plagiarisation of their works, and had to take legal advice, as well as criticism and accusations from literary reviewers of resorting to stereotyped characters . Their working style reportedly had many `frank and free discussions!’ as to plot and characterisations – but their ideas blended well. Their best regarded works, in literary terms, were The Real Charlotte, and The House of Inver.
It has been claimed that that the main character, of `The Real Charlotte was based on a scheming cousin to Edith. The plain, capable and financially successful middle aged spinster Charlotte sees her chances of love and marriage fade, when her pretty, flirtatious cousin Francie arrives in her countryside home. Francie, who should have shared Charlotte’s inheritance, charms the man Charlotte loved, and bitterness, betrayal, scheming and revenge result in tragedy.
The House of Inver deals with the decline and fall of a family and a house. It apparently was inspired by Edith’s spotting of a deserted Big House in Co. Galway. The story details the history of the fictitious Prendeville family, over 150 years. Their fall, due to pride and profligacy leads to illegitimacy and bitterness and wrangling over inheritance.
On December 21st 1915 Violet Martin died from a brain tumour, and had suffered for some time from injuries sustained in a hunting accident in 1898. Edith was stunned with grief, but kept on working, producing further books – and tried to keep in touch with Violet through spiritualist sceances. She also cared for the family farm – her brothers were away at war. She ran it efficiently, and became the farmer who introduced Friesian cattle to Ireland. Edith also relished her role, from 1903, as Master of the Hunt in West Carbery.
She continued to travel, often on early versions of promotional book tours. On one occasion, she bought some racehorses, took them abroad to sell – and combined the trip with a book promotion tour! There were also exhibitions of her art work in Dublin and London in the 1920s, and Edith became successful as an illustrator of sporting and children’s books. Her success meant that she could also make some changes in the house, installing an attached bathroom on stilts, which remains to this day. She died on October 8th, 1949 at Tally Ho, at the small house she had bought in Castletownshend in 1947, reputedly after she could no longer climb the stairs at Drishane..
Aside from the popularity of their work, the other continuing fascination with Somerville and Ross centres on wherether or not they had a lesbian relationship. Their closeness throughout their shared lives, culminating the fact that Edith was buried alongside Violet, plus Edith’s attempts to contact her in sceances, has included them in many lists of well known lesbians.
Whether there is truth in the belief is open to debate. When told of two of the most famous historical Irish lesbians – The Ladies of Llangollen, who left Ireland for Wales, Somerville described it as a `vile, grotesque romance’. Some critics claim that they were unacknowledged lesbians, who had an emotional, but not sexual relationship. Yet there are also the practical facts of Edith’s early romances. Both she and Violet wanted independence, and knew that combining their talents could help them earn money. They had seen at close quarters the lack of options, as well as the lack of freedom in society for women without money – and could certainly be termed New Women.
Ironically, Edith Somerville’s determination to achieve that independence did not just lead to a body of stories which are still read, and viewed on screen, a century later. It also meant that the fact that Drishane House remains in the family – and is open to the public at certain times of the year. The lovely eighteenth century home still sits in its idyllical situation by the sea, and its unspoiled coves and gardens remain. With a few changes, however. The estate can now be enjoyed by many more people, as there are holiday cottages in the grounds – a development which would doubtless have pleased Edith Somerville! https;//drishane.com
Drishane House remains in the family – and is open to the public at certain times of the year.
New research has highlighted that 57 per cent of people in Ireland are unaware that pneumococcal is a vaccine preventable disease.
The new research carried out by Behaviour & Attitudes, on behalf of MSD Ireland examined the awareness and knowledge of pneumococcal disease and showed that awareness levels of the disease and related vaccination programme remain quite low.
Only one in five (21 per cent) indicated that they have reasonably good knowledge of pneumococcal disease.
The research also found that more than 600,000 people aged 65 and older are at risk of contracting pneumococcal disease in Ireland. Further more 76 per cent of people are unaware that there is a pneumococcal vaccine available for free as part of the National Immunisation Programme for adults over the age of 65 and at-risk adults such as people with diabetes, heart disease or respiratory conditions and patients receiving chemotherapy. Of those who develop an invasive pneumococcal infection, one in four will get pneumonia, one in four will get meningitis, and one in 10 will die.
Invasive pneumococcal disease, more generally known as 'pneumo', is a major cause of illness and death in Ireland, particularly among the very young, the elderly and those with a weakened immune system. A pneumococcal infection can cause many types of illness that range from mild to very severe, including pneumonia, meningitis, sinus, ear, bone and blood infections 62 per cent of people surveyed either did not know or knew very little about the serious illnesses caused by pneumococcal disease.
Pneumococcal infection is responsible for 50 per cent of community acquired pneumonia and bacteraemia where the overall mortality rate can be as high as 25 per cent. It can also cause a wide variety of other infections including sinusitis, osteomyeltitis, bronchitis and otitis media.
Of those who haven't received the pneumococcal vaccine, 56 per cent said it was because they did not know anything about it, and 42 per cent said they have never been advised to get the vaccine. This highlights the important role of healthcare professionals in recommending vaccination. In fact, 86 per cent of those surveyed revealed they would take the pneumococcal vaccine if recommended to them by their GP. The sharing of vaccine information by healthcare professionals, such as GP's, other HCPs and pharmacists, was shown to be essential. Speaking about the importance of contacting a GP for information about pneumococcal disease, GP, Dr. Gary Stack said: ‘Throughout the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how important it is to prioritise your health, and how essential it is you are up to date on vaccinations. 'Pneumo' or pneumococcal disease is a major cause of illness and death in Ireland, particularly among the very young, the elderly and those with a weakened immune system. It's therefore important that anyone who is eligible for the vaccine as part of the National Immunisation Programme, gets the information they need regarding pneumo and increases their awareness of the disease.’
Neil Johnson, CEO of Croí, the West of Ireland Heart Charity, said: ‘We would urge those with weakened immune systems, including people with heart disease, to know pneumo, especially during the winter months, which are a time to catch serious illness and infection. Know how you can be protected against pneumo by speaking with your GP or talk to Croí.’
#KnowPneumo The #KnowPneumo campaign aims to raise awareness about pneumococcal disease and its potential to cause serious illness. A number of patient organisations have joined forces as part of the initiative, namely Age Action, Diabetes Ireland, the Asthma Society of Ireland and Croí.
To find out more about the campaign, check out www.pneumo.ie or follow #KnowPneumo online.
About the research The research was carried out by Behaviour and Attitudes on behalf of MSD. The survey is based on a nationally representative survey of 1,400 adults aged 16 and over, a population representative quota sample of 1,000 and a down weighted booster of an additional 400 over 50s. Fieldwork was carried out online from 1st to 17th June.
