Performer to Peeress: Harriet Mellon, Duchess of St. Albans

19th Century England was an era of great industrialization with changes to the order of the highly restrictive society. The middle class and nouveau riche were climbing further and further up the social ladder and women were seeking independence, working everywhere from grand estates to factories and more importantly, the stage. This real-life Cinderella story that was about to unfold created an upheaval to London’s marriage market. Relationships between noblemen and actresses were by no means a new thing for the British aristocracy, ever since women were allowed to join the stage professionally, they have long been at the center of attention. These dazzling personalities garnering the adoration of, oftentimes, already married suitors. Creating this portrayal of actresses as paragons of low morality in “polite” society. So, it must have been quite a shock in 1825, when the 27-year-old William Beauclerk, 9th Duke of St. Albans married the 47-year-old former actress, Harriet Mellon Coutts. Harriet’s rise in the ranks was unheard of during this time, especially considering her occupation as an actress. Who was this woman? How did her occupation as a former actress prepare or help her navigate through the performativity of court life?

Harriet Mellon was born in November of 1777. Her mother, Sarah, was a single mother, who presented herself as the widow of Lt. Mellon who supposedly died while deployed in India. Theories and gossip wonder if Harriet was illegitimate and her mother claimed paternity in order to avoid the life of an unwed mother but as is the way of these situations, we really can only take this information with a grain of salt but ultimately Sarah gained employment to help support herself and her daughter with a traveling theatre troupe as a seamstress allowing for the young Harriet to grow up in the bustling world of theatre.

Harriet got her big chance as a professional actress after being seen by Richard Sheridan, who saw her performing in the traveling troupe, and she was then contracted with the famed Drury Lane Theatre in London. This would be the catalyst and starting point of Harriet’s fame, fortune, and success. One of her noteworthy and recognizable roles was Lydia Languish in Richard Sheridan’s The Rivals. It was said of her abilities that “her powers as an actress were not brilliant; with naturally clear and full-tones voice, her determined imitation of Mrs. Jordan gave the greater roundness to it. Her best attempts were in chambermaids” so while she wasn’t going to be creating many waves for her quality of acting, she made them nonetheless, for it was during this time that she caught the eye of the wealthy and well-known banker, Mr. Thomas Coutts, who bankrolled loans to royalty and nobles alike.[i] Although Coutts was 70 years old when he met the young Harriet, he saw promise in this spirited young woman and so soon took her under his wing as a “friend” (mistress most likely if you’re listening to the gossip). Around the beginning of this acquaintance is when Harriet had a significant change in fortune. Harriet found herself with a winning lottery ticket. There was some speculation that the ticket in question was actually orchestrated by Thomas as a way to cover up the monetary gifts he was giving to her. With this newfound wealth she became his protégé and learned about business and banking. Thomas’ surviving letters show that they loved each other and had a great relationship no matter how it was labeled. Although none of her responses survive, we can assume she, at least on paper, returned the sentiments. But as always, the relationship-whether paternal, platonic, or romantic- provided much fodder for the gossips and columnists alike. Harriet’s final performance was the role of Audrey in As You Like It in February of 1815, the reason for this was soon revealed with shock and intrigue when the pair married the following month, a full year after Thomas’ first wife’s passing. Even though the act of young women marrying much older men was not out of the ordinary for this time, it still turned heads due to Harriet’s social status and the money-minded upper class could only interpret it as a money grab. Yet, contrary to the public’s assumptions, the pair were happily married for 7 years until Coutts passed away. With his passing came the question: Who was going to inherit his estate? The actress-wife or the children from his first marriage? Much to the chagrin of his three grown daughters, the majority of Coutts’ estate went to Harriet. This upset them greatly, but it allowed Harriet even more of a golden opportunity to be a woman of independent means and wealth.

Now, a widowed woman in possession of a large fortune must be in want of a husband, right? It was only a matter of time until suitors lined up and put in their bid for a chance to win the heart-and purse- of Harriet. Lo and behold entering from stage right, the young William Beauclerk, the 9th Duke of St. Albans. The winner of this matrimonial game. The lucky groom’s lineage actually shows a connection to theatrical profession as originally created for one of the illegitimate sons of King Charles II and Nell Gwyn, who was notably famous for being one of the first professional actresses during the English Restoration. It is of little surprise that the 9th Duke would feel drawn to a former actress.

 Imagine the comfort that must have brought Harriet knowing that her husband had theatrical blood in his veins, a descendant of another trailblazing actress. For all her notoriety as a banker and performer, what must it have been like to step from the world of greasepaint and sets to the equally artificial world of court life? An actress is probably best suited for the role of peeress. For what is the life of the nobility if not to perform for society? Actors play nobles all the time- the mannerisms are easily replicated (or exaggerated if it’s a comedy). Although, at this time the acting style was very different than in the contemporary theatre of today. Performing at this time was far more presentational, full of bombastic proclamations of thoughts and feelings leaving little to no subtlety. It wouldn’t be until the end of the 19th/early 20th century where acting became less surface level and more naturalistic, but we can still look at the occupation because thoughts around the profession have only slightly shifted over time. Yet, even during Harriet’s time, at the end of the day actors are putting on a mask or personality that is different from their true persona. The job of courtiers and the nobles was to play out their dynastic political dramas through hushed voices and plastered on smiles all in the name of propriety. With the theatre holding a mirror commenting on them, Harriet is acutely aware of how to maneuver the change in status. This author likes to think that the Duchess took to her new life rather easily, as if it were another role for her to slip into.

Like most good things, it came to an end. In the summer of 1837, the Duchess’ health began to decline until she passed away in August of that year. With her death, the question of who stood to inherit her fortune was raised. In her will she allotted an annuity to her widower, the Duke? She had no biological children and she was not on good terms with her step-daughters from her first marriage. So aside from various friends, her step-granddaughter, Angela Burdett received a bulk of Harriet’s income from the bank. The reason for the selection of the beneficiary was because it was said that Angela “had the best character, had spent pleasant times with Harriot, and, born in 1814 just before the marriage, had been too young to engage in family quarrels” [ii]. She made various stipulations for Angela in the will, such as she had to do various things like take the surname of Coutts and she could not marry a foreigner, which is a very specific requirement, but there have probably been weirder stipulations across history.

Thus concluded the life of the spectacular Harriet Mellon, Duchess of St. Albans, rising from the lower classes to one of the highest peerages of the land. An actress destined for bigger and greater showcasing that life is a performance and the greatest roles are found where you least expect it. Having the courage to stand out amongst a society looking down their noses at the acting profession, those same aristocrats found themselves dining with a former actress as a social equal. In a time when women were relegated to the shadows as a submissive decoration, Harriet subverted these rules to carve a path for herself, moving from actress to banker to duchess, she stepped into the spotlight and took center stage. It is through the telling of these stories that Harriet’s memory, and those like her, are kept alive. She was not the first nor the last actress to climb the social ladder and find herself as a peer of the land.

Katherine “Katie” Jackson

Katherine “Katie” Jackson is an Adjunct Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University
teaching in both the theatre and business departments. She received her MFA in Theatre
Performance Pedagogy from Virginia Commonwealth University and her BFA in Theatre
Education from East Carolina University. Her scholarly research interests include 17-19th
Century Actresses, European Royalty/Nobility, and Jane Austen. Her first foray into research
was her master’s thesis Madeleine Béjart: La Femme Galante, discussing the life of a 17th Century actress, Madeleine Béjart. She hopes this blog post is the beginning steps of a much larger work that will also be titled Performer to Peeress.

---

[i] Mrs. Mathews, “THE DUCHESS OF ST. ALBANS,” Bentley’s Miscellany, 1837-1868 (London: R. Bentley, 1845), p.12.

[ii] Joan Perkin, “From Strolling Player to Banker Duchess. Harriot Mellon, Duchess of St Albans,” History Today, vol. 50 (London: History Today Ltd, 2000), p.6.

---

---