Charlotte Mansfield (1881–1936) was an English novelist, poet, and traveler, known for her planned 1909 "Cape to Cairo"[1] journey.[2]
Charlotte Mansfield was also an accomplished needlework artist, and exhibited her embroidery work in London.
Career
editMansfield's novels include Torn Lace (1904);[3] The Girl and the Gods (1907);[4] Love and a Woman;[5] Red Pearls (1914);[6] Gloria, a Girl of the South African Veldt (1916);[7] The Dupe (1917), a World War I spy story;[8] Sex and Siller (1920);[9] and Strings (1920), a supernatural thriller about an evil violin.[10] She also published two books of poems, Flowers of the Wind (1899), and Poems (1902).[11][12] The Spectator reviewer called her poetry "verses of indifferent quality, now and then audacious in sentiment."[13]
Her widely publicized "Cape to Cairo" tour in fact only reached to Lake Tanganyika before returning to South Africa.[14] She wrote about her travels in southern Africa in Via Rhodesia: A Journey Through Southern Africa (1911)).[15] In reviewing the book, The Register of Adelaide commented, "a less fitting person to follow in the steps of Mary Kingsley could hardly be imagined."[16]
Mansfield's Gloria, A Girl of the South African Veldt was one of the first South African novels to be adapted for the screen, when American director Lorimer Johnston made a silent picture at Killarney Film Studios in 1916 based on Mansfield's novel, starring English actress Mabel May in the title role.[17]
Charlotte Mansfield was also an accomplished needlework artist, and exhibited her embroidery work in London.[18]
Personal life
editIn 1909, she married mining engineer Vladimir Raffalovich in London; they lived in Johannesburg, South Africa.[19] Alfred Edward Turner and Mansfield's new sister-in-law Vera Raffalovich Friedlander presented and hosted the wedding festivities.[20] Vladimir Raffalovich survived Charlotte Mansfield Raffalovich when she died in 1936, aged 55 years.
References
edit- ^ "From Cape to Cairo: Big Trip for Women" Winnipeg Tribune (28 November 1908): 9. via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Marriage of the White Donna" New Zealand Herald (23 November 1909).
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Torn Lace (W. Scott 1904).
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, The Girl and the Gods (Hermes Press 1907).
- ^ "Lady's Trek through Africa" Glamorgan Gazette (20 August 1909): 3.
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Red Pearls (London 1914).
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Gloria, A Girl of the South African Veldt (Holden and Hardingham 1916).
- ^ Sharon Ouditt, Women Writers of the First World War: An Annotated Bibliography (Routledge 2002): 31-32. ISBN 9781134946020
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Sex and Siller (Holden and Hardingham 1920)
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Strings (W. Westall & Company 1920).
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Flowers of the Wind (Elkin Matthews 1899).
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Poems (London: Bumpus & Co., 1902).
- ^ "Some Books of the Week" The Spectator (15 July 1899): 97/
- ^ "Via Rhodesia" Sydney Morning Herald (22 April 1911): 4. via Trove.
- ^ Charlotte Mansfield, Via Rhodesia: A Journey through Southern Africa (London: S. Paul & Co. 1911).
- ^ "Review of Books: A Lady in Africa" The Register (1 April 1911): 4. via Trove.
- ^ "Lorrimer Johnston Heard From" The Moving Picture World 27(March 18, 1916): 1839.
- ^ Ernest L. Scott, "Society Belle's Long Walk" Omaha Daily Bee (31 January 1909): 11. via Newspapers.com
- ^ Mick Conefrey, How to Climb Mount Blanc in a Skirt: A Handbook for the Lady Adventurer (Macmillan 2011): 54. ISBN 9780230106420
- ^ "Exploration Romance" The Telegraph (20 November 1909): 8. via Trove.
