Mordaunt Scandal

Overview

The Mordaunt divorce case in England: Sir Charles Mordaunt's suit against his wife Harriet and the co-respondents Viscount Cole and Sir Frederick Johnstone, tried in 1869–70 with the Prince of Wales called as a witness (he denied any impropriety); the divorce was refused on the ground of Lady Mordaunt's insanity and finally granted in 1875 (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriet_Mordaunt; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Charles_Mordaunt,_10th_Baronet). Not a person; see Lady Mordaunt and Johnstone.

Relevance to Marie

Stub replaced. The earlier RSR said Lady Mordaunt was accused of adultery 'with multiple men including the Prince of Wales'; the sources above say he was a witness and never named as co-respondent, so the earlier wording is corrected here. 1875 is the year of the final divorce (Wikipedia, Cole's entry), which fits Marie's «encore».

References in Diary

On 7 April 1875, reading the newspaper summary, Marie says: «Encore le scandale Mardaunt !… c'est la première fois que je le lis» (031.0115). She imagines treating any husband but Hamilton as Lord Mordaunt, and writes «Le prince de Galles et Johnstone» (031.0118); later she cannot stop thinking of Johnstone in the Mordaunt affair, and "à cause de cette belle lady, le diable acquiert de la valeur"; she loves eccentrics and bad lots (031.0125, 031.0126).