Social Victorians/People/William James

Also Known As

 * Family name: James
 * William Dodge James
 * Evelyn Elizabeth Brinton Forbes James
 * William Dodge James, who married Evelyn Elizabeth Forbes, is on this page. The newspapers are likely to call him Mr. James (as opposed to Mr. A. James for Arthur James.)
 * Arthur (John Arthur) James (24 February 1853 – 30 April 1917) is on the Cavendish-Bentinck page.
 * Henry James, Baron of Hereford is on the Baron James of Hereford page.
 * Not the American William James, brother of the writer Henry James

Timeline
1889 March 5, Evelyn Elizabeth Forbes and William Dodge James married.

1897 July 2, Friday, Evelyn Forbes James (at #364 in the list of attendees) and William Dodge James (at #686 in the list of people who attended) attended the Duchess of Devonshire's fancy-dress ball at Devonshire House.

Evelyn Forbes James
At the Duchess of Devonshire's fancy-dress ball, Mrs. Evelyn Elizabeth Forbes James was dressed as Archduchess Elizabeth in the Austrian Court of Maria Theresa Quadrille.

Alice Hughes's portrait (right) of "Evelyn Elizabeth Brinton (née Forbes) as the Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria" in costume is photogravure #267 in the album presented to the Duchess of Devonshire and now in the National Portrait Gallery. The printing on the portrait says, "Mrs William James as the Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria," with a Long S in Archduchess."

It is not obvious who Evelyn James meant by the Archduchess Elisabeth of Austria. No extremely notable Elisabeths of Austria lived between 1592 and 1831. Her dress looks like a late-Victorian interpretation of an 18th century dress, and the Morning Post and her portrait in the commemorative album say she was in the Austrian Court of Maria Theresa. Maria Theresa had a daughter named Elisabeth of Austria, but her beauty was so damaged by small pox that she did not marry and lived much of her adult life in a convent, although, like many unmarried aristocratic women in convents at the time, she did "not live a monastic life."

Elisabeth of Württemberg (21 April 1767 – 18 February 1790), was Archduchess of Austria for 2 years before her death in childbirth by virtue of her marriage to Archduke Francis of Austria.

The portrait (above left) of Elisabeth of Württemberg — painted in 1785 by Johann Baptist von Lampi the Elder and in the collection at the Museum of Art History in Vienna — is not the original for Evelyn James's dress.



William Dodge James
William Dodge James was dressed as "an officer of the Mousquetaires du Roi, time of Louis XV.," wearing a "regimental scarlet coat with very wide skirts and turned-down collar; vest, scarlet; breeches, scarlet; cuirass, leather, blue enamelled and bordered with silver, covered black velvet embroidery."

Le Conteur's portrait of "William Dodge James as Monsieur d'Artagnan" in costume is photogravure #268 in the album presented to the Duchess of Devonshire and now in the National Portrait Gallery. The printing on the portrait says, "Mr William James as Monsieur d'Artagnan."

D'Artagnan, of course, is one of the Musketeers, or Mousquetaires. Alexander Dumas père based his portrayal of D'Artagnan on a novel, Gatien de Courtilz de Sandras' Les mémoires de M. d'Artagnan, which was based on the life of Charles de Batz de Castelmore, Count D'Artagnan (c. 1611 – 25 June 1673).

Demographics

 * Nationality: British

Residences

 * West Dean Park, Chichester, Sussex

Family

 * Evelyn Elizabeth Forbes ( – 13 May 1929)
 * William Dodge James (7 December 1854 – 22 March 1912)
 * 1) Helen Milicent James ( – 15 Aug 1967)
 * 2) Silvia Helena Sophia James
 * 3) Edward James James
 * 4) Alexandra Maud Venetia James (26 December 1896 – 4 February 1981)
 * 5) Audrey Evelyn James (21 April 1902 – 14 February 1968)