On June 20, 2013 we met at the home of Jan Griffin to disucss The Countess of Carnarvon. Jan’s selection was a big hit with the group because we learned the history of Highclere Castle. It was a touch of the Great Gabsy because of the flow of money, parties, and elite guests.
One of the reasons I love the group so much is because of the discoveries we make about ourselves within the pages. Valerie Taylor-Crow shared with us that she is decended from Alfred Rothschild one of the main characters of the book. He was the millionaire that afforded Almina’s luxurious lifestyle. However, during WW1 Almina generously opened her Castle as a hospital and was credited with being one of the first to introduce holistic medicine. Another great asset of Almina was her gift of speech. One snipet of a speech suggested women “to widen and perhaps enrich the spirit of public life by being simply ourselves.”