English Artist: Alyn Mattieu Williams

Miniature portrait by Alyn M. WIlliams of Miss Rachel Estelle Berridge, who later became the Countess of Clonmell.

Miss Rachel Estelle Berridge (1871-1952),
Who Later Became Countess of Clonmell

English
dated 1898
by Alyn Mattieu Williams (1865-1941)
(signed obverse, lower right edge "Alyn Williams / 1898")

2 1/4 x 2 7/8 inches (sight)

watercolor on ivory; housed under glass in a gold case with a pierced spiral crested bail

Signature above is Miss Berridge's signature as appeared on the registration
of her marriage to Rupert Charles Scott, 7th Earl of Clonmell, on August 19, 1870.(*1)

About the Portrait: When acquired for the collection in 2015, the identity of the subject of this portrait was unknown. The dealer from whom it was purchased had simply listed it as "An Attractive young Lady by Alyn Williams". Some years later, while researching the life and work of Alyn Williams, we came across (and were fortunately able to acquire for the collection) an extremely scarce book by Dr. George C. Williams, titled "An Essay on Portrait Miniatures, with a Brief Note on the work of Alyn Williams". A very limited edition, intended for private circulation rather than commercial distribution, only 200 copies of the book were printed. (The copy we acquired happens to be #1 of 200.) Included in the book are 24 tipped-in prints, with images of miniature portraits dating from the 17th through the 20th centuries. Several of those prints are copies of miniatures that had been painted by Alyn Williams; and we were delighted to discover that one of them featured an image very similar to our miniature portrait by Williams, thereby helping us identify the subject as Miss Rachel Estelle Berridge (1871-1952) who, three years after Williams painted her portrait, became the Countess of Clonmell, upon her marriage in 1901 to Rupert Charles Scott (1877-1928), the 7th Earl of Clonmell. Williams is known to have painted at least three copies of Miss Berridge's portrait, one of which he retained for his personal collection. One can see minor, nuanced differences between the copies, making each unique.

Copy of the tipped-in print referenced above, which revealed
the identiity of the subject as being the Countess of Clonmell.

About the Subject: Rachel Estelle Berridge was born in Drayton, Oxfordshire, England on July 17, 1871, the eldest of seven children born to Samuel Berridge and Rachel Alice Caunter. Her father was a tenant farmer on the estate of the Duke of Buccleleuch, at Toft Hill, near Rugby, in Warwickshire.(*2) Her mother died in 1885, when Rachel was just 13 years old. Her father died four years later, in 1889, when she was 17 (five months shy of her 18th birthday), leaving several orphaned children, the youngest being 10 years old.

As was not uncommon during the late Victorian era, following the deaths of their parents, the Berridge children were separated. As of the 1891 England Census, Rachel was living with the family of Thomas Grounds, in Passenham, Northamptonshire (about 60 miles from central London), where she worked as a governess.)(*3) Emily Mary Berridge (1872-1954) was living with the family of Lord George Loftus, in Hertford, Hertfordshire, where she too worked as a governess.(*4) Samuel Caunter Berridge (1873-1948) was living with the family of his uncle, Thomas W. Berridge, in Ratley, Warwickshire.(*5) William Guy Caunter Berridge (1875-1933) and Stephen Christopher Caunter Berridge (1876-1904) were boarding students at the West Green Grammar School in Pocklington, Yorkshire(*6) The youngest sibling, Cyril Cuthbert Berridge (1879-1951), then 12-years-old, was living at the Royal School Orphanage, located in Wolverhampton, Staffordshire.(*7) (Research has uncovered no record of the whereabouts in 1891 of the second youngest Berridge sibling, Douglas Henry Berridge, born in 1877. It is possible that he had previously died in infancy.)

Later in 1891, Rachel, left the employ of the Grounds family and moved to the larger city of Margate, Kent, seeking to both make a name for herself and provide additional financial support for her younger siblings. There, she met Sarah Thorne (1836-1899), an actress and manager of the Theatre Royal in Margate. Thorne invited Rachel to apprentice under her at her School of Acting at the Theatre Royal, where the tall and attractive newcomer proved to be a quick study and was soon taking on larger acting roles. Her success on the stage in several leading roles brought her public acclaim, allowing her to, by 1892, move on London, where she became a resident actor at the Royal Court Theatre, and she remained a popular fixture in the London acting circuit for several years thereafter.

On August 8, 1901, at the age of 30, Rachel Estelle married Rupert Charles Scott (1877-1928), the 7th Earl of Clonmell, at which time she became the Countess of Clonmell.(*8) One might easily imagine that the Earl met his bride in a London theatre, but it is said that they actually met in Warwickshire while the Earl was hunting on his properties, adjacent to his family estate, Eathorpe Hall, near Leamington. Rachel was visiting family in Warwickshire and was enjoying a walk outdoors when she encountered the Earl while he was out on his hunt.(*9)

By all accounts, the Earl and his countess had a happy marriage, and they had two children, both daughters: Moira Estella Norah Frances Scott (1902-1964) and Sheila Mary Scott (1906-1984). Sadly, however, the Earl died at the fairly young age of 51, on November 18, 1928.(*10) Having had no male heirs, upon the Earl's death, his titled estate passed to his 75-year-old uncle, Dudley Alexander Scott, who became the 8th Earl of Clonmell. The 8th Earl himself subsequently passed away 7 years later, in 1935. He too had no male heirs and, thus, upon his death, the Earldom of Clonmell became extinct.

Upon the death of her husband in 1928, Rachel technically became a dowager countess, but she continued to be referred to in the press and social circles as Rachel, Countess Clonmell. Thereafter, she chose to live in London and, although she no longer had marital rights to Clonmell titled land and assets, she lived a comfortable life, her husband having at his death left her an estate valued at £16,400 (equivalent to about £1,316,000 in 2025, when accounting for inflation).(*11)

Rachel, having outlived her husband by 24 years, passed away on June 27, 1952, one month shy of her 81st birthday. Having by then exhausted much of the funds her late husband had left her in 1928, she left her daughters a much smaller estate, valued at £6,050 (equivalent to about £220,000 in 2025).(*12)

Other portraits in the Tormey-Holder Collection by Alyn Williams
(click photo for larger view and additional information):

"The Father of the Novices", an Early Twentieth
Century Franciscan Novice Master

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(*1) East Sussex, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1936. East Sussex Record Office; Brighton, England; Sussex Parish Registers; Reference: PAR 277/1/3/1. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*2) "From Clubland", society news, as published in "The Cheltenham Looker-On", a social and literary weekly periodical, Cheltenham, England, September 14, 1901 edition, page 870.

(*3) 1891 England Census. The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891; Class: RG12; Piece: 1189; Folio: 67; Page: 1; GSU roll: 6096299. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*4) 1891 England Census. The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891; Class: RG12; Piece: 1111; Folio: 59; Page: 3; GSU roll: 6096221. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*5) 1891 England Census. The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891; Class: RG12; Piece: 1181; Folio: 71; Page: 11; GSU roll: 6096291. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*6) 1891 England Census. The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891; Class: RG12; Piece: 3900; Folio: 59; Page: 19; GSU roll: 6099010. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*7) 1891 England Census. The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891; Class: RG12; Piece: 2231; Folio: 151; Page: 2; GSU roll: 6097341. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*8) East Sussex, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1936. East Sussex Record Office; Brighton, England; Sussex Parish Registers; Reference: PAR 277/1/3/1. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*9) "Earl and Actress Secretly Married at Brighton" (newspaper article), as published in "The Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser", Manchester, England, September 11, 1901 edition, Vol. LXXVII, No. 13,991, page 8.

(*10) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995. Principal Probate Registry; London, England; Calendar of the Grants of Probate and Letters of Administration made in the Probate Registries of the High Court of Justice in England. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.

(*11) Ibid.

(*12) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995. Principal Probate Registry; London, England; Calendar of the Grants of Probate and Letters of Administration made in the Probate Registries of the High Court of Justice in England. Accessed online, June 21, 2025, via Ancestry.com; Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.