Chinese Whispers

A newly published book on the Churchills has once again repeated the unfounded gossip about a non-existent nude painting of Lady Colin Campbell in the Duke of Marlborough’s dressing room.

It is widely documented that Lady Colin Campbell and the Duke of Marlborough were lovers, but it is less well known that they had a long and enduring relationship that went beyond the physical. However, he was the brother of Lord Randolph Churchill, uncle of Winston Churchill, and head of the huge Blenheim estate; she was married to a husband she no longer loved.

It is not known when Lady Colin and the Duke became lovers – before or after her judicial separation and divorce petition. They both denied any involvement in court, but there is plenty of evidence of the affair later on.

When the Duke died suddenly and unexpectedly in November 1892, a friend of Lady Colin’s wrote that it was “the greatest blow” in her life and that “he was more devoted to her than any man that ever came into her life.”

The Duke’s affair with Lady Colin had continued after he had married an American heiress – according to some, to finance a new roof at Blenheim – and they had not hidden their relationship. Understandably, this had upset Duchess Lily. When the Duke died, some sources state that Lily tore up photographs she found of Lady Colin. However, later sources change this to nude photographs and then it becomes a life-sized portrait and finally a nude portrait by Whistler! I have seen no original source nor any evidence to back up any of these claims or lend any truth to them. Whistler had famously painted Lady Colin in 1886 – but in a white evening dress. It is as unlikely that Gertrude would have consented to be painted naked, as it is that Whistler would have undertaken such a work.

The constant repetition of the gossip by respected authors is annoying from a research point-of-view. (The last time it happened I got no answer to my request to the author for his source – not surprisingly!) But what is more galling, is that something that Lady Colin held so dear is cheapened.

This photo of Lady Colin was taken within a year of his death and although she is attempting a smile for the camera, you can still see the sadness in her eyes.