Grace Elliott , Grace Dalrymple Elliott (1754? - 1823) was a British courtesan who was resident in France at the time of the French Revolution and an eyewitness to events. She was once mistress of the Duke of Orléans who was cousin to King Louis XVI. She was arrested and held awaiting death by guillotine but was released after the death of Robespierre. She wrote an autobiographical account of her experiences entitled Ma Vie Sous La Révolution published posthumously in 1859 .

Life

The daughter of an of an Edinburgh lawyer she married the extremely rich and elderly Dr. John Elliott in 1771. However in 1774 she fled Edinburgh with Lord Valentia after a scandal. Her own account would put her at 9 years old but this is not believed to be true.

Thomas Gainsborough painted her portrait in 1778 and this is now on display in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In 1782, she gave birth to a girl. The Prince of Wales (afterwards George IV), Charles Windham, George Selwyn, and Lord Cholmondeley all claimed simultaneously paternity.

She started an affair with the French Duke of Orleans in 1784 and in 1786, settled in Paris. She remained there throughout the revolution. The duke sided with the revolutionaries, even voting for the execution of his cousin, the King and whipping up hatred against Louis's wife, Marie Antoinette. Grace, on the other hand, supported the monarchy and she became a devoted follower of Louis XVI and his family. His execution in 1793 devastated her.

France was plunged into a reign of terror and paranoia gripped the people. Despite his support for the revolution, the duke was executed because of his royal blood (he was descended from Louis XIII). Grace was imprisoned, even though her affair with duke was long over. She was a known royalist, and British as well. She was also suspected of having helped a fellow royalist, the Marquis de Champcenetz, escape the death sentence in Paris. She shared a cell with Madame du Barry, who had once been the lover of King Louis XV. Whilst in this prison, they heard the news that the Queen, Marie Antoinette had been executed on October 16 1793. Grace later wrote that the queen's "greatness and courage" inspired all the prisoners to try and follow her example and meet their deaths with dignity.

Although many of her friends met their deaths, Grace did not. She narrowly avoided death and was released after the Reign of Terror came to an end. In total she had been confined to four different prisons by the republican government. In later years, rumour had it that she had rejected Napoleon Bonaparte's offer of marriage.

Film

A dramatic portrayal of part of her life is contained in the film The Lady And The Duke (French title L'anglaise Et Le Duc by director Eric Rohmer, France, 2001. English actress Lucy Russell played Grace and Jean-Claude Dreyfus played the duke of Orleans.

External links

• Grace Elliots portrait by Thomas Gainsborough at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art (http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/bpor/ho_20.155.1.htm)