Charlotte Canning, Countess Canning

She moved to England with her family in 1831, marrying Canning four years later. From 1842 to 1855, Lady Canning served as a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Victoria and was a favourite of the monarch. She moved to Calcutta in 1856 upon her husband's appointment, and two years later she became India's first vicereine when the British Crown took over India. Her death was widely reported in England, where she was exemplified as a symbol of feminine virtue in the Victorian era. A type of Indian dessert, ledikeni, is named after her.

• Name — The Countess Canning • Office1 — Viceregal-Consort of India • Term Start1 — 1 November 1858 • Term End1 — 18 November 1861 • Monarch1 — Victoria • 2blankname1 — Governor- General • 2namedata1 — The Earl Canning • Predecessor1 — position established • Successor1 — The Countess of Elgin • Father — Charles Stuart, 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay • Mother — Lady Elizabeth Yorke • Born — 31 March 1817 • Birthplace — Paris, France • Died — 18 November 1861 • Place of death — Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India • Honorific Prefix — Her Excellency The Right Honourable

• Illustration — Charlotte Stuart with her mother and sister, by George Hayter in 1830 Charlotte Stuart was born on 31 March 1817 at the British embassy in Paris. Her father was the British ambassador, Sir Charles Stuart (later Baron Stuart de Rothesay), a grandson of the 3rd Earl of Bute. Her mother was Lady Elizabeth Yorke, a daughter of Philip Yorke, 3rd Earl of Hardwicke. Charlotte's grandmother, the Countess of Hardwicke, was present for the birth; in a letter, she observed that the "first look of the young lady was so strikingly like her father as to make us all laugh". She was named after her godmother Queen Charlotte. A year later, Charlotte was joined by a younger sister, Louisa Anne (later Marchioness of Waterford); the pair were considered beautiful despite the plain looks of their parents. Charlotte stayed in Paris with her family, acquiring a fluency in French, until 1831 when her father finished his posting as ambassador. They returned to London where they lived in a newly constructed residence in Carlton House Terrace. Three years after returning to London, in 1834, Charlotte came out in society. Shortly after doing so, she met the Hon. Charles Canning, only remaining son of the former prime minister, George Canning. The younger Canning proposed and Charlotte consented, but her father declined to permit the match due to political disagreements he held with George Canning. Eventually, under family pressure, he agreed to allow the marriage. Charlotte married Charles Canning on 5 September 1835 at St Martin-in-the-Fields, London. He was elected to the British Parliament the following year, and in 1837 succeeded to his mother's title as Viscount Canning, whereupon Charlotte became Viscountess Canning. In 1859 Charles was raised in the peerage as Earl Canning and Charlotte became Countess Canning.

• Illustration — Queen Victoria's First Visit to her Wounded Soldiers by Jerry Barrett, 1859, with Lady Canning in attendance In 1842, Charlotte was appointed as a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Victoria, becoming a favourite of both Victoria and her husband Prince Albert. She accepted the offer within a day, writing that serving the queen was a "source of pride and gratification". She may have consented for financial reasons, as the family, while respectable, was not wealthy. Her childless marriage to Lord Canning was also not the happiest of unions. Charlotte held this position until 1855. Hubbard notes many traits that likely secured Charlotte her role in the Victorian court. In addition to being well-connected – as the daughter of an ambassador and spouse of a rising politician – Charlotte was of respectable character; she was discreet, intelligent, socially adept, and beautiful. She was also fluent in French, making her useful in certain social situations, and she was known for her intelligent conversation. Being a Lady of the Bedchamber was largely ceremonial; Charlotte served as a companion of the queen, accompanying her on daily outings and to formal ceremonies. She also entertained visiting royals and dined with the queen when Victoria was not with her family. Lady Canning was an adherent of Anglicanism, her religious views tending towards high church traditions, despite Victoria's personal dislike of this perspective. Victoria favoured worship within the Presbyterian tradition found within the Church of Scotland; her ladies-in-waiting were drawn from different wings of the Established Churches.

• Illustration — Watercolour by Lady Canning, of the Hill Fort of Kangra, Kangra Valley, Himachal Pradesh, 1860 Lord Canning was appointed Governor-General of India, and the couple moved to the country in January 1856. They resided at Government House in Calcutta. She disliked the formality and routine of the residence, writing that "its greatest sin is its intense dullness". The couple spent their retreats at Barrackpore, a "resonantly Anglicized place" sixteen miles from central Calcutta. An accomplished botanist, Canning came to love Barrackpore's "jungly" characteristics, noting that the "luxuriant growth in the jungly ground outside, of dazzling green during the Rains, is more beautiful than I can describe and I always think of the Palm House at Kew". Lady Canning was in the country during the India Mutiny, a rebellion in India against the rule of the British East India Company that ran from May 1857 to July 1859. Her husband was much criticized for his perceived clemency of the rebels, but the Cannings had the firm support of Queen Victoria. After the end of the Mutiny, rule of India was transferred over to the British Crown. Lord Canning was made its viceroy, making his wife the country's first vicereine. Her new position lacked official duties, but she did play a social role and partook in philanthropic efforts. • Illustration — On an elephant, 1858–61, by Oscar Mallitte • Illustration — At Simla with her husband and Lord Clyde, Commander-in-Chief, 1860 • Illustration — Lady Canning, Major Jones and Lady Campbell, Simla, 1860

• Illustration — Photographed by Henry Hering for a carte de visite around 1860 Owing to her high position in the country, Charlotte once described her situation as being "isolated to a degree I could never have imagined". She found comfort in her collection and artistic renderings of India's flora, and devoted much of her time to the garden at Barrackpore. As an amateur artist, Canning favoured watercolours and kept many portfolios of her works. The historian Eugenia W. Herbert describes Charlotte as the "most memorable and the most accomplished of the women botanical illustrators in India". Her efforts fill the pages of nineteen volumes, currently being held in Harewood House. She was also one of India's earliest photographers, taking many photos, and also commissioning and collecting others. Also interested in natural history, Charlotte collected samples when travelling with her husband on his tours of India. Her cousin accompanied one of these trips and noted that Charlotte's "genuine love of plants and flowers makes every step in this country of interest to her." She also travelled without her husband. She kept a journal and wrote frequently to Queen Victoria, providing detailed accounts of life in India to the fascinated monarch. She also sent nature samples to Victoria's children. Victoria, in turn, replied regularly. Much of their correspondence still remains.