Lady Almina Carnaron by Helleu c. 1901 (Copyight expired, public domain image)
This is a review of the first half of William Cross’s book which deals with the first half of Almina’s life and her marriage to the Fifth Earl Carnarvon, George Herbert. The book continues on to document the second half of her life which is in many ways more interesting, but of little interest to an Egyptological audience.
The biography is the definitive work documenting Almina’s life. Such is the depth of research that it is likely to retain this accolade forever. The 844 endnotes on 33 closely-typed pages demonstrate the extent of the research Cross has undertaken.
Along the way Cross challenges a number of established views, placing Carnarvon’s motoring accident at a different date to most sources. It is, however, his remarks on parentage which may be most relevant and which explain the apparent reluctance of the Herbert family to allow the author access to the Highclere archives. Almina’s birth was registered as Almina Victoria Maria Alexandra Wombwell, daughter of Marie Wombwell and Frederick Wombwell and his wife Marie Wombwell (neé Boyer). Cross claims that the Highclere guidebooks refer to Frederick as Captain, which he maintains is inaccurate because Wombwell did not obtain this rank. Indeed, Cross portrays Wombwell as a gentleman wastrel, and from a family with very modest claims to nobility. It is therefore no surprise that the Herberts prefer to portray Almina as the illegitimate daughter of the luminary and financier Alfred de Rothschild and indeed Rothschild is generally believed to be her father. I have written of him myself in that capacity.
Cross takes issue with the identification of Rothschild as her father. He makes strong and plausible arguments that Rothschild was an inveterate homosexual and was unlikely to have fathered Almina. Cross argues that allowing a popular impression that Almina was his daughter suited Rothschild in keeping his sexual orientation secret. The Rothschild Archive describes Alfred as a “flamboyant dandy” and acknowledges that Niall Ferguson’s history of the Rothschilds presents Alfred de Rothschild as someone who “lived the life of a fin de siècle aesthete, at once effete and faintly risqué’ but declines to identify him as homosexual. If homosexuality was illegal and unacceptable conduct for an Edwardian gentleman, it was doubly so for a scion of a leading Jewish family. It is therefore unsurprising that official biographies do not portray Rothschild as homosexual. That he lived to his seventies but remained unmarried and, with the possible exception of Almina Wombwell, childless is indeed plausible evidence that he was indeed gay, or at the very least bisexual. Doubtless any new biographers of Rothschild’s life will explore this possibility in greater detail. For now, there seems good reason to accept Cross’s view that Almina may not have been Rothschild’s illegitimate daughter. Cross remarks that the situation could be resolved by DNA tests.
DNA tests, however, seem unlikely, for reasons which Cross himself identifies. The Rothschild family is unlikely to wish to “out” Alfred and there are even fewer reasons for the Herberts to consider a DNA test because Cross also argues that the Fifth Earl Carnarvon was not in fact the father of the Sixth Earl. Although the evidence for Almina’s parentage is well-argued, Cross presently relatively scanty evidence to support his theory that the Sixth Earl was illegitimate, and indeed has not identified a plausible candidate as an alternative father (but see the book’s Epilogue for any explanation by the author on this point). He argues that Almina and her husband were not sexually intimate at that time, and indeed he believes the marriage had not been consummated, and that a child, even if illegitimate, suited the couple’s political interests. This is a somewhat unsatisfactory argument because, while Almina may not have found Carnarvon physically attractive, she is often referred to as the Pocket Venus of Highclere and it seems unlikely that Carnarvon, who unlike Rothschild was definitely a man with an eye for pretty ladies, was not attracted to Almina. In Georgian society, a wife was expected to do her duty and it seems unlikely she would have risked annulment and possible disinheritance on grounds of non-consummation. Moreover, even Cross concedes the legitimacy of the couple’s second child, Lady Evelyn. Cross records that the Sixth Earl was not close to his father, a fact which is well supported in other literature. Lady Evelyn in contrast was her father’s favourite and companion, and was with him at the opening of the tomb of King Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings. Families are often not close, however, and of itself the Firth Earl’s obvious preference for his daughter is not direct evidence that the Sixth Earl was not his biological son. In the absence of DNA tests, an examination of physical features may offer at least a partial line of enquiry for taking the research further, but at present the evidence for Cross’s theory seems weak.
In other regards the biography of the first half of Almina’s life is not particularly contentious. She is portrayed as a vain, somewhat shallow Edwardian lady of high station. Indeed, for much of the first few chapters she is a flat, one-dimension character seemingly lacking in motivation and characterised more by her dislikes than by any clear motivation other than ambition, and perhaps vanity. In my opinion, this is a weakness in the biography. Cross could have done more to consider why Almina chose various courses, and indeed more to consider her actions against her social mileu. Although Almina’s early life appears shallow, an Edwardian countess was not expected to be much more than an engaging hostess and socialite, and at those tasks Almina clearly succeeded. The book comes to life, however, at the start of the Great War when Almina, wholly independently of Carnarvon, opened and managed a war hospital, firstly at Highclere then in London. The portrayal of Almina is transformed from a flat, uninspiring character into an independent woman committed to her charges and able to network on their behalf.
Although the Carnarvons spent considerable time in Egypt, both as participants in Cairo’s ‘season’, and on various archaeological expeditions, relatively little detail is presented in this book. Almina’s personal excavation of a set of alabaster jars in the Valley of the Kings is mentioned, but the location and dates of other excavations received little mention. As Almina stayed in England when Carnarvon rushed to the Valley of the Kings when Carter sent the famous telegram informing his patron of his discovery, even the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb is addressed in one short section. That is not, of course a criticism of the biography, and accurately reflects Almina’s rôle as a mere off-stage observer of the discovery, but it limits the appeal of the biography to Egyptophiles.
It is as a nurse, and in her life after the death of Carnarvon, that Almina shines; Cross’s book reflects this. It is a highly competent biography, but ultimately one which is more engaging and successful in documenting the latter half of her life which is less celebrated than her marriage to Carnarvon.
Epilogue
At the back of the book is a short (3 pages) epilogue which is easily missed. It tells the story of an attempt by the Carnarvons to produce an offical biography, to be authored by one David Sox. Cross conjectures that the initial research led Sox to similar conclusions about the 6th Earl’s parentage and that the work was quietly dropped, although he identifies possible alternative reasons as well. If any readers do chose only to follow the part of the book leading up to the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb and the death of the 5th Earl, then make sure you read the Epilogue as well. It is potentially the most explosive part of the book.
Bibliography
The Life and Secrets of Almina Carnarvon, William Cross, 2011, (ISBN 10 1-905914-02-04)
Rothschild Archive, Web site, http://www.rothschildarchive.org/ib/articles/AR2006Alfred.pdf
Publication
The book is self-published and is available directly from the author. There are details, including more information on the author and further reviews, on the website for the book:
http://lifeandsecretsofalminacarnarvon.yolasite.com/
Anybody who would like a copy is advised to act quickly: there is a discounted launch offer which runs through to 31st August.
Note by Kate Phizackerley
I should like to thank the author, William Cross, for his assistance with this review, and Jennifer Eberhart for her work on proof-reading and refining my orginal draft.
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