Which of James Cooper’s three marriages was this pair of portraits commissioned for?
Q The man in these photographs is James Cooper, my husband’s great grandfather (1832–1912). He was married three times and I wondered which of his wives is shown in the other photograph. He married his first wife, Adelaide, in 1853 but she died in 1876. He then married Clara Gasson (my husband’s great grandmother) in 1878. She died in 1888. He married his third wife, Ellen Miller, in 1893. The name “Mayer Frères” is on the back of both portraits. Zena Cooper
A These appear to be hand-coloured printed versions of original daguerreotype photographs. True daguerreotypes, fashionable in the 1840s–1850s, were unique photos struck directly onto silvercoated copper plates, but could be copied onto paperper or card as
1 HEADDRESS
The female sitter’s ornate, fashionable round headdress looks like a special bridal cap. White and blue, used in its decorations, the ribbon ties and the parasol, were popular colours for brides.
2 HAIR
Her hairstyle, centrally parted and dressed in two high side loops, is early Victorian, most typical of the 1840s and early 1850s.
3 OUTFIT
The lady’s fine brown silk daytime costume featuring short jacket-bodice with flared ‘pagoda’ sleeves and white undersleeves, her full skirt and shawl all suggest the 1850s.
4 WEDDING RING
In marriage portraits (both artworks and photographs) the bride usually clearly displayed her wedding ring, proudly demonstrating her marital status. here. Sometimes copy photographs were retouched by hand using watercolour paints. Artistic, hand-coloured photographs cost more, but were considered attractive and suitable for display at home.
These pictures are identically presented within oval-shaped apertures on card mounts. Undoubtedly, they were conceived as paired ‘companion’ pictures depicting a married couple, seated in typical mid-19th-century pose, turning inward slightly towards each other. Mayer Frères was a Parisian studio patronised by high society. The British Museum owns examples of its work, and its web page at britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG208147 states that the studio operated from the address on the reverse of the images – 48 Rue Vivienne – only in 1851–1856. This perfectly fits the wedding of James and Adelaide. The outfits also indicate a date in the 1850s. Jayne Shrimpton
5 MAN’S ATTIRE
The man’s formal knee-length frock coat, teamed with contrasting trousers and a deep V-fronted waistcoat revealing an expanse of white shirt and wide silk cravat, are also characteristic of the 1850s.
6 AGES
The couple do appear to be older than in their 20s. However, if your identification of the man as James Cooper, born 1832, is accurate, then the two portraits must represent him with his first wife Adelaide.
Q My 3x great grandmother Martha Pedlingham married Charles Ruck in Camberwell on 20 June 1848. He had been invalided out of the Army in April 1846 with an amputated arm. His regiment was the King’s Own Light Dragoons. He died very shortly after they wed. Did she get to keep his pension and would she have lost it if she remarried, as she did in 1854? Raymond Fowler
A The simple answer (cruel, perhaps, by modern standards) is no. The pension was granted to the soldier only and, in the period we’re looking at, was based on his rank and the severity of his disability. Charles’ actual pension would be hard to calculate, but as a sergeant with what I assume would be treated as a third-degree wound (where he might be able to earn some kind of living), he’d be unlikely to receive more than 2s a day. No account was taken of any dependents, including wife or children. When the pensioner died, his pension ceased.
Charities existed that provided assistance to soldiers’ widows, but I suspect even they would struggle to provide help to a woman who’d married a soldier after he’d left the Army. Even when widows’ pensions were introduced during the Second Boer War (1899– 1902), they were only granted to women married ‘on the books’ – ie with the approval of the unit’s colonel. Soldiers who received approval were permitted married quarters, and their wives were allowed into the barracks and paid for laundry work and so on.
The 1829 regulations for granting pensions to discharged soldiers, the rules applying in 1846, are available online at iiif.wellcomecollection.org/ pdf/b18681918.
Phil Tomaselli