Works of Thomas Hardy discussion

Thanks Emlymom,
This looks great. Eager to get started and discover these dames.
A

Rubbing my hands together to compare the first Countess of Wessex with the current Countess of Wessex! (Namely Prince Edward's wife, Sophie).

I know that Hardy's Wessex is his fictional name for the county of Britain known as Dorset. I did learn that Wessex was what the area was called many centuries ago. I also know I have heard the name of an Earl of Wessex character in at least one movie of 15th to 17th Century England.

My question is why is there still a Countess of Wessex and why is Prince Edward the Earl of Wessex, if there isn't still a Wessex? Aren't they supposed to be Earl of a certain part of the kingdom? Please explain to an American who doesn't fully understand British titles.

Hello Brian,
Well I'm certainly no expert on this and you may already know some of this information. In the time of the Saxon invasions, those Saxons that settled in the West of England were known to live in Wessex, those in the south as Sussex, those in the east as Essex and those in the middle of England as Middlesex. Wessex did indeed exist circa 900s-1000s before it was subsumed into greater England later on. Hardy, in my view, was simply revitalising a former regional name once given to the area he lived in and set his stories in. I've come to realise, that at times throughout history, reigning monarchs create dukedoms, earldoms, baronets, etc as they see fit.
Our poor Edward, is a lesser son (even more so now that the rules have changed to include females to be in line to the throne), he is 11th in line to the throne. If aristocrats marry commoners (untitled spouses) as in the case of our current Edward and Sophie, he didn't receive a dukedom outright such as his nephews William and Harry did. He is, however, promised his father's dukedom when his father dies (the Queens' husband). So he will then be known as the Duke of Edinburgh. According to Wikipedia, it was Edward himself who, after watching the movie Shakespeare in Love, liked the name of the fictional character Lord Wessex, and approached his mother with that title for himself and his commoner wife. The Queen had the final decision and agreed with her younger son. I imagine there is more to it than that, but 'one never knows what goes on behind the esteemed walls of the palace!!'

Emlymom wrote: "Anxiously awaiting your evaluation, Alison!"

I must say, Emlymom, I was a bit non-plussed about this first dame. I felt that I knew more about the Squire, rather than the females in the story. The character I warmed most closely to was that of Reynard (who patiently sat in the background waiting to claim his prize - or who I also thought was having a good ol' time on the Continent sewing his wild oats liberally before he had to return to England and settle down.) Deliberately catching the smallpox, I thought a bizarre move and assume that Hardy might have overheard that incident as a bit of gossip and included it in this story on a whim. Funnily, I enjoyed the scenario of the story tellers (the male narrators),this narrative ploy, more than the story of Betty itself.
So it wasn't a good start for me. I'll start dame #2 on Monday and see how we go with that one. Sophie, the current Countess of Wessex, remains morally and justifiably intact in my eyes.

Alison, thanks for the info. I seem to also remember an Earl of Essex operating in Elizabeth I's time.
Also, Emilymom is creating a thread for each of the stories and there is a thread for Story #1, The First Countess of Wessex. While I realize you were answering Emilymom's inquiry in this thread, you might be interested in posting your views on the story in that thread too.

I think Hardy would have been amused to know that after 100 years there would have been a real Countess of Wessex.

There has been another thread, called just "Wessex?" about where this place was meant to be.

At the moment I do find it all a bit puzzling . . . I'll add something on this to the GND second story thread. Meanwhile, note that Middlesex, Essex and Sussex are not adjacent counties, Middlesex is no longer on the map (it has been absorbed into greater London), Sussex itself is divided into East and West, and Hardy's Wessex is too far to the west of all of these to form a natural complement.

Alison wrote: "Hello Brian,
Well I'm certainly no expert on this and you may already know some of this information. In the time of the Saxon invasions, those Saxons that settled in the West of England were known..."

Well, there definitely is more to it, because I forgot to mention that both William and Harry married commoners and, not only received dukedoms, but didn't have to relinquish any titles. Martin can probably help us out better here!

Alison, no, your own comments are very well informed. I may be British, but I don't understand the complexities of the peerage system any more than someone born outside my rather crazy country.

I do like the basic wording "Noble Dames" in the title, however. A dame can either be someone posh (like Dame Judy Dench) or just any regular female, as in, "there is nothing like a dame", and she can be noble by birth or noble in her nature.