Lady Mordaunt (Harriet Moncreiffe)
Également connu sous : Lady Mordaunt (Harriet Moncreiffe), Harriet Moncreiffe, Lady Mordaunt, Mordaunt
## Basic Information
Lady Mordaunt was Harriet Sarah Moncreiffe (1848-1906), the wife of Sir Charles Mordaunt, 10th Baronet, who was at the center of one of the most sensational scandals of Victorian Britain. In 1869, she confessed to adultery with multiple men, including the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII), leading to a divorce case in 1870 in which the Prince was called as a witness -- the first time a Prince of Wales had given evidence in open court.
## The Scandal
After giving birth to a daughter in 1869, Lady Mordaunt confessed to her husband that she had committed adultery with "Lord Cole, Sir Frederick Johnstone, the Prince of Wales and others, often and in open day." The resulting divorce trial in February 1870 was a sensation across Europe. Medical experts claimed she was suffering from puerperal insanity, and the divorce was not granted. She spent the remaining 36 years of her life in private confinement.
## Connection to Marie's Diary
The Mordaunt scandal would have been well known to Marie and her circle. As a case involving the British aristocracy and the Prince of Wales, it was exactly the kind of society gossip that circulated in Nice's international community. Marie, who was fascinated by the British aristocracy (especially the Duke of Hamilton), would have been aware of the scandal and its implications about the private morality of the social class she idealized.