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Lola Montez: A Life
The exploits of Lola Montez - onstage as a dancer and an actress, in politics as a power behind thrones, and in bedrooms around the world - made her one of the best-known women of the Victorian era. Born Eliza Gilbert, daughter of British and Irish parents, she transformed herself into an aristocratic Spanish dancer, carrying on an audacious masquerade that took her to Europe, America, and Australia and attracting admirers and scandal wherever she went. When she died in 1861 at age forty, her obituary appeared in papers around the world. Yet her true story has always been obscured by the web of lies that she herself constructed. This absorbing and entertaining biography of Lola Montez is the first to reveal the facts of her incredible life.
468 pages, Hardcover
First published March 27, 1996
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May 4, 2018
First read in January 1999; reread in May 2018. My original review is shown below, followed by some additional thoughts after rereading.
[Review from January, 1999 reading]
Lola's life was simply sensational -- she was one of the 19th century's most successful courtesans (mistress of Liszt and King Ludwig I of Bavaria, among others). As this biography makes abundantly clear, Lola had more gumption per square ounce than just about anyone else at the time. A completely self-made woman, the Irish-born Eliza Gilbert ran away from an older husband, re-emerging as the exotic Spanish dancer Lola Montez. Taking the major cities of Europe by storm, she cut a swath through proper society. What Lola wanted, Lola got. Even after she fled England after being charged with bigamy and started a new life in the Gold Rush towns of the West, she continued to build on the legend.
An interesting aside: Bruce Seymour, the author, won $250,000 as contestant on Jeopardy!, which enabled him to take several years off from his job and research the book. Seymour's enthusiasm for (and, at times, his exasperation with) his subject transports this biography to far beyond a run-of-the-mill portrayal. One thing I particularly enjoyed about the book was that it was so wholeheartedly pro-Lola --warts and all.
Lola, revisited: May 2018
A year or so ago I joined a singular book club which, unlike most clubs, doesn't assign books but rather themes, leaving members entirely free to choose which books they want, though it's generally accepted that the book will have some relation to the assigned theme. Each person gives a brief synopsis about her book at the meeting, and much interesting discussion invariably results. We're encouraged to be as creative as we wish in interpreting the themes, and it's perfectly okay to read a blog, magazine article, or even watch a TV program that is related to that month's theme. For me one of the pleasures is rooting around to find a book (or several books) that not only fits the theme but that will be interesting to tell the group about.
This month (May 2018), the theme is Liar! , with the following directive:
Read something where a liar or lie is a pivotal part of the story. You can read anything...fiction, non-fiction, poem, graphic novel, blog, essay, article...just make sure it has to do with a lie or a liar.
Well, the first thing that sprang to mind was this biography I read nearly twenty years ago. Lola Montez was simply the most brazen, accomplished, and unrepentant liar that I've ever encountered in print. (Though, I have to say, there are people on today's political scene who make her look like an amateur.)
It's always interesting to revisit books that made a strong impression some time in the past, to reflect on that former experience, and to compare it to the second encounter. In this case, I have to say that I left with less regard for Lola than I had before but with a bit more respect for the author.
Lola was, in many respects, her own worst enemy, continually giving way to unreasonable fits of temper, many times slapping people, hitting them with her signature riding whip, or just plain brawling with them. I had to wonder if this were far more than making a show to add to her infamous reputation as a passionate "Spaniard" and in fact a sign of serious mental instability.
But, it has to be said, having established her brand as a fiery temptress, she milked that image for all it was worth. For it was the image, rather than much innate talent, that drew people to her orbit. Based on the swath she cut through society, Lola must have been incredibly magnetic. Men were drawn like moths to the flame. I soon lost count of her lovers. She had, what, three marriages (the second deemed bigamous, which made the third, what, TRIgamous? something like that) and a seemingly endless parade of other lovers, some serious, others mere philanderings. It didn't surprise me to find that some biographers (not this one) believe that she died not of pneumonia but from complications from syphilis.
Furthermore, her profligate lifestyle went far beyond mere mismanagement of money and bordered on stupidity. She made and lost fortunes, repeatedly. Surely she could have foreseen that in the future, her looks and lovers would desert her and that she'd need something set aside? Lola seems to have gone far beyond being willful into territory better described as self destructive.
At any rate, during this second reading, I was less sympathetic to Lola than I had been before, though I did enjoy all the strange encounters and events of her life. I know more now about the 19th century than I did twenty years ago, so I was better able to appreciate what Lola was up against in the 1840's-1860's. She had an undoubtedly important role in the abdication of her patron and lover, King Ludwig I of Bavaria, and the chapters dealing with her time in Bavaria were the most interesting to me.
Unfortunately, I found that the last 125 pages, which dealt with her endless tours as dancer, actress, and lecturer in the U.S., Australia, and Europe, grew repetitive. Seymour was keen to give the readers a blow-by-blow account of her travels, how successful (or not) she was in each city she performed in, what the press reviews were like, whom she met and worked with, how much money she made, and so on. In short, the last portion of the book, with its extensive quotes and heaps of detail, simply went on for too long and grew tedious.
Inexplicably, he gives short shrift (a mere page) to one puzzling episode, when Lola is lured to Paris expecting to make a fourth marriage to a man who purported to be a wealthy nobleman -- but who was no such thing. In this case it was Lola drawn to the liar, a reversal of fortune if ever there was one. I gather that Seymour unearthed little about this episode in his research, which is too bad.
Speaking of which, hats off to Seymour's research, which spanned continents and multiple languages. It was a gutsy and dauntless effort, and even if the book that resulted was, in my opinion, more detailed than it needed to be, it still stands as the definitive (if not impartial) portrait of Lola.
[Review from January, 1999 reading]
Lola's life was simply sensational -- she was one of the 19th century's most successful courtesans (mistress of Liszt and King Ludwig I of Bavaria, among others). As this biography makes abundantly clear, Lola had more gumption per square ounce than just about anyone else at the time. A completely self-made woman, the Irish-born Eliza Gilbert ran away from an older husband, re-emerging as the exotic Spanish dancer Lola Montez. Taking the major cities of Europe by storm, she cut a swath through proper society. What Lola wanted, Lola got. Even after she fled England after being charged with bigamy and started a new life in the Gold Rush towns of the West, she continued to build on the legend.
An interesting aside: Bruce Seymour, the author, won $250,000 as contestant on Jeopardy!, which enabled him to take several years off from his job and research the book. Seymour's enthusiasm for (and, at times, his exasperation with) his subject transports this biography to far beyond a run-of-the-mill portrayal. One thing I particularly enjoyed about the book was that it was so wholeheartedly pro-Lola --warts and all.
Lola, revisited: May 2018
A year or so ago I joined a singular book club which, unlike most clubs, doesn't assign books but rather themes, leaving members entirely free to choose which books they want, though it's generally accepted that the book will have some relation to the assigned theme. Each person gives a brief synopsis about her book at the meeting, and much interesting discussion invariably results. We're encouraged to be as creative as we wish in interpreting the themes, and it's perfectly okay to read a blog, magazine article, or even watch a TV program that is related to that month's theme. For me one of the pleasures is rooting around to find a book (or several books) that not only fits the theme but that will be interesting to tell the group about.
This month (May 2018), the theme is Liar! , with the following directive:
Read something where a liar or lie is a pivotal part of the story. You can read anything...fiction, non-fiction, poem, graphic novel, blog, essay, article...just make sure it has to do with a lie or a liar.
Well, the first thing that sprang to mind was this biography I read nearly twenty years ago. Lola Montez was simply the most brazen, accomplished, and unrepentant liar that I've ever encountered in print. (Though, I have to say, there are people on today's political scene who make her look like an amateur.)
It's always interesting to revisit books that made a strong impression some time in the past, to reflect on that former experience, and to compare it to the second encounter. In this case, I have to say that I left with less regard for Lola than I had before but with a bit more respect for the author.
Lola was, in many respects, her own worst enemy, continually giving way to unreasonable fits of temper, many times slapping people, hitting them with her signature riding whip, or just plain brawling with them. I had to wonder if this were far more than making a show to add to her infamous reputation as a passionate "Spaniard" and in fact a sign of serious mental instability.
But, it has to be said, having established her brand as a fiery temptress, she milked that image for all it was worth. For it was the image, rather than much innate talent, that drew people to her orbit. Based on the swath she cut through society, Lola must have been incredibly magnetic. Men were drawn like moths to the flame. I soon lost count of her lovers. She had, what, three marriages (the second deemed bigamous, which made the third, what, TRIgamous? something like that) and a seemingly endless parade of other lovers, some serious, others mere philanderings. It didn't surprise me to find that some biographers (not this one) believe that she died not of pneumonia but from complications from syphilis.
Furthermore, her profligate lifestyle went far beyond mere mismanagement of money and bordered on stupidity. She made and lost fortunes, repeatedly. Surely she could have foreseen that in the future, her looks and lovers would desert her and that she'd need something set aside? Lola seems to have gone far beyond being willful into territory better described as self destructive.
At any rate, during this second reading, I was less sympathetic to Lola than I had been before, though I did enjoy all the strange encounters and events of her life. I know more now about the 19th century than I did twenty years ago, so I was better able to appreciate what Lola was up against in the 1840's-1860's. She had an undoubtedly important role in the abdication of her patron and lover, King Ludwig I of Bavaria, and the chapters dealing with her time in Bavaria were the most interesting to me.
Unfortunately, I found that the last 125 pages, which dealt with her endless tours as dancer, actress, and lecturer in the U.S., Australia, and Europe, grew repetitive. Seymour was keen to give the readers a blow-by-blow account of her travels, how successful (or not) she was in each city she performed in, what the press reviews were like, whom she met and worked with, how much money she made, and so on. In short, the last portion of the book, with its extensive quotes and heaps of detail, simply went on for too long and grew tedious.
Inexplicably, he gives short shrift (a mere page) to one puzzling episode, when Lola is lured to Paris expecting to make a fourth marriage to a man who purported to be a wealthy nobleman -- but who was no such thing. In this case it was Lola drawn to the liar, a reversal of fortune if ever there was one. I gather that Seymour unearthed little about this episode in his research, which is too bad.
Speaking of which, hats off to Seymour's research, which spanned continents and multiple languages. It was a gutsy and dauntless effort, and even if the book that resulted was, in my opinion, more detailed than it needed to be, it still stands as the definitive (if not impartial) portrait of Lola.
July 28, 2009
Famous dancer, courtesan and intriguer Lola Montez (1821-61) was born in Ireland as Eliza Gilbert and grew up in Ireland, India, Scotland, and England. She eloped at the age of 16 and returned to India with her husband, although their marriage broke up five years later.
Casting about for a way to get ahead, Gilbert went to Spain, where she studied dance and learned Spanish, and finally reinvented herself as Lola Montez. She premiered in London and performed across Europe, always accompanied by controversy, as her erotic dancing style offended Victorian morality.
Another quality that made her a controversial figure was her extreme arrogance and hot temper, and she is known to have horsewhipped newspaper editors and others. She further flouted conventional morality by becoming a courtesan, hobnobbing with many important European figures, the best known of whom was King Ludwig I of Bavaria, who fell hopelessly in love with her.
Up until that time a hard-working and responsible ruler, Ludwig expended vast amounts of money on her and finally made her Countess of Landsfeld, as her demands grew greater and greater. Montez was so unpopular in Bavaria as to cause open rebellion in the streets of Munich, and Ludwig was finally forced to abdicate on her account. At least Ludwig remained rational enough to resist her attempts to affect government policy in Bavaria.
Montez later became an actress and public lecturer and toured the United States and Australia, finally dying in New York City at age 39.
The achievement of Bruce Seymour’s LOLA MONTEZ: A LIFE is that he has sorted through the many stories about Montez and has tried to give us a more accurate account of her life than previous biographers have done. This is no small task because Montez lied constantly about everything, and conflicting reports exist about virtually everything she did.
My only slight reservation about the book is that it was filled with typographical errors, something I might not have expected from Yale University Press.
I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in 19th-century European history and intrigue.
Casting about for a way to get ahead, Gilbert went to Spain, where she studied dance and learned Spanish, and finally reinvented herself as Lola Montez. She premiered in London and performed across Europe, always accompanied by controversy, as her erotic dancing style offended Victorian morality.
Another quality that made her a controversial figure was her extreme arrogance and hot temper, and she is known to have horsewhipped newspaper editors and others. She further flouted conventional morality by becoming a courtesan, hobnobbing with many important European figures, the best known of whom was King Ludwig I of Bavaria, who fell hopelessly in love with her.
Up until that time a hard-working and responsible ruler, Ludwig expended vast amounts of money on her and finally made her Countess of Landsfeld, as her demands grew greater and greater. Montez was so unpopular in Bavaria as to cause open rebellion in the streets of Munich, and Ludwig was finally forced to abdicate on her account. At least Ludwig remained rational enough to resist her attempts to affect government policy in Bavaria.
Montez later became an actress and public lecturer and toured the United States and Australia, finally dying in New York City at age 39.
The achievement of Bruce Seymour’s LOLA MONTEZ: A LIFE is that he has sorted through the many stories about Montez and has tried to give us a more accurate account of her life than previous biographers have done. This is no small task because Montez lied constantly about everything, and conflicting reports exist about virtually everything she did.
My only slight reservation about the book is that it was filled with typographical errors, something I might not have expected from Yale University Press.
I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in 19th-century European history and intrigue.
July 28, 2018
I had to push myself through the first three quarters of this book mostly because her life gets so predictable at a certain point: she moves to a new place, dances, causes scandal, is kicked out, moves to a new place, etc. etc. But having started it, I'm glad to have read it through to the end to see her finally reckon with herself in her older age.
I think Seymour does a good job of giving a balanced portrayal of her by drawing attention to her flaws but not relishing in them. However, I think he went a little too far in trying to rehabilitate her as a feminist figure. He framed some of her acts of defiance in too admirable a light. Yes, when she attacked a policeman with a whip she was certainly breaking strict social codes for women, but she was also attacking someone with a whip. She defied socials conventions not because she cared about improving the lives of women, but because she was selfish, daring, and volatile.
I think Seymour does a good job of giving a balanced portrayal of her by drawing attention to her flaws but not relishing in them. However, I think he went a little too far in trying to rehabilitate her as a feminist figure. He framed some of her acts of defiance in too admirable a light. Yes, when she attacked a policeman with a whip she was certainly breaking strict social codes for women, but she was also attacking someone with a whip. She defied socials conventions not because she cared about improving the lives of women, but because she was selfish, daring, and volatile.
September 7, 2016
After reading a novelization of this interesting woman's life, I was moved to find an actual biography. In fact, my public library has two: this is the earlier (1995), and clearly the result of an impressive amount of original research. Seymour appears to have had no difficulty with the multilingual nature of his archival sources (few would argue that the most interesting period of Montez' life, as well as the best-documented by letters, was when she was the mistress of King Ludwig of Bavaria; she also spent periods of time in French-speaking Europe, and she posed as Spanish, which meant she had at least some command of the Spanish language). I enjoyed Seymour's measured but lively discussion of all phases of the life of Montez (aka Eliza Gilbert, aka the Countess of Landsfelt, aka any number of other occasional names).
At the end of this account, I couldn't help feeling a little sorry for Lola. She was celebrated during her life for her physical beauty, for an apparently ungovernable temper, and for a blithe disregard for "middle-class morality", as Alfred Doolittle would say. What becomes rather clear is that she earned all of this reputation before she was thirty, making far more than most women would have of the very limited opportunities she was offered by her birth (illegitimate) and upbringing (peripatetic, without secure financial resources, and with little or no care or love from her nearest surviving relative, her mother). It was apparently in her 30s that she grew up quite a bit, discovering that she had more reliable talents - decent acting, and quite good public speaking - than the limited quasi-dancing and scandalous acquisition of rich lovers that had sustained her as a younger woman. She also, apparently sincerely, turned to religion, of the Protestant variety. Her near monomania on the subject of Jesuit plots against her is one of the less attractive features of the story, and one I do not fully understand, though it appears to be very much intertwined in European politics of the day. Seymour downplays the influence she claimed to have had over the liberalization of Bavaria during the time when she was Ludwig's mistress, which was also the time of the 1848 revolutionary movements across Europe.
Though she may have grown up a bit when she went to America, according to Seymour's sources, Lola did not by any means stop trading on her scandalous status; either completely deliberately (she is perhaps the first woman ever to be photographed holding a cigarette, in New York in 1851) or by her continuing failure to control her temper (her Australian acting tour was only one of the occasions on which she created an incident by taking a riding whip to someone). More troublingly, even as she developed a reputation for being very generous with both money and time to humble people, she was also capable of downright mean behaviour, such as assembling an American acting company to go to Australia, and then dumping them completely after their first engagement, leaving them to find their own way home. Unfortunately, she also appears to have remained an inveterate liar throughout her life, although Seymour's quotations suggest she may have become self-aware about that towards the end.
Though he documents Montez' affiction by migraines throughout her life, Seymour does not give a medical diagnosis of what carried Lola off at the age of 39. According to Wikipedia, it was syphilis.
I am impressed with Seymour. He's not an academic (the writing of this volume was financed by his extensive winnings on Jeopardy) but he has the instincts of one, and he got this book published in a nice edition by Yale University Press. He also had the grace to donate all his research materials to a University library so that others could delve even deeper. Good for him.
At the end of this account, I couldn't help feeling a little sorry for Lola. She was celebrated during her life for her physical beauty, for an apparently ungovernable temper, and for a blithe disregard for "middle-class morality", as Alfred Doolittle would say. What becomes rather clear is that she earned all of this reputation before she was thirty, making far more than most women would have of the very limited opportunities she was offered by her birth (illegitimate) and upbringing (peripatetic, without secure financial resources, and with little or no care or love from her nearest surviving relative, her mother). It was apparently in her 30s that she grew up quite a bit, discovering that she had more reliable talents - decent acting, and quite good public speaking - than the limited quasi-dancing and scandalous acquisition of rich lovers that had sustained her as a younger woman. She also, apparently sincerely, turned to religion, of the Protestant variety. Her near monomania on the subject of Jesuit plots against her is one of the less attractive features of the story, and one I do not fully understand, though it appears to be very much intertwined in European politics of the day. Seymour downplays the influence she claimed to have had over the liberalization of Bavaria during the time when she was Ludwig's mistress, which was also the time of the 1848 revolutionary movements across Europe.
Though she may have grown up a bit when she went to America, according to Seymour's sources, Lola did not by any means stop trading on her scandalous status; either completely deliberately (she is perhaps the first woman ever to be photographed holding a cigarette, in New York in 1851) or by her continuing failure to control her temper (her Australian acting tour was only one of the occasions on which she created an incident by taking a riding whip to someone). More troublingly, even as she developed a reputation for being very generous with both money and time to humble people, she was also capable of downright mean behaviour, such as assembling an American acting company to go to Australia, and then dumping them completely after their first engagement, leaving them to find their own way home. Unfortunately, she also appears to have remained an inveterate liar throughout her life, although Seymour's quotations suggest she may have become self-aware about that towards the end.
Though he documents Montez' affiction by migraines throughout her life, Seymour does not give a medical diagnosis of what carried Lola off at the age of 39. According to Wikipedia, it was syphilis.
I am impressed with Seymour. He's not an academic (the writing of this volume was financed by his extensive winnings on Jeopardy) but he has the instincts of one, and he got this book published in a nice edition by Yale University Press. He also had the grace to donate all his research materials to a University library so that others could delve even deeper. Good for him.
September 30, 2016
Might as well call this book "The Life of a Liar". Granted, all I knew about her was that she was Ludwig I's mistress until the townspeople ran her off, and for good reason apparently. Had no idea she was actually Irish, not Spanish, and basically lied her way through life, building up her own persona and fame. Will anyone ever know who this gal actually was? Hardly unlikely. Crazy that she pulled the wool over so many eyes just because she had a pretty face.
October 13, 2025
An excellent biography on an astonishingly wild and difficult subject. I can only imagine the task Seymour faced down when researching and writing. Her own lies about her life history, and the incredible journeys she made across seas, repeatedly, plus the number of times she reinvented herself, must have made this an immensely challenging undertaking.
Lola’s egoism and constant violence (both emotional and physical) makes it very difficult to like her very much until the last fifty or so pages, when she apparently committed her life to Christ and sought to blot out all parts of her sinful self. Her seemingly eager and honest pursuit of forgiveness from God for what had been a completely hedonistic life brought me to tears. I did not expect to be so moved.
This was a slow read, as Seymour’s prose is incredibly dense.
What a wild ride!
Lola’s egoism and constant violence (both emotional and physical) makes it very difficult to like her very much until the last fifty or so pages, when she apparently committed her life to Christ and sought to blot out all parts of her sinful self. Her seemingly eager and honest pursuit of forgiveness from God for what had been a completely hedonistic life brought me to tears. I did not expect to be so moved.
This was a slow read, as Seymour’s prose is incredibly dense.
What a wild ride!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 16, 2024
Some people are just too too much for their time--Lola was certainly one of them. Spoiler alert--she was born in Ireland, went to India with her Irish parents, was educated in England, and was no respecter of moral codes. She recreated herself as the Spanish dancer Lola Montez--her dancing sounds barely adequate, but her personality and style made her famous. She is held responsible for the king of Bavaria stepping down--the scandal! Her life would be an unbelievable TV series if it weren't true--but it was.
December 1, 2022
Oh my. Lola Montez was a hot mess. I don't know how a dancer with little talent managed to take the world by storm even after reading this. I mostly enjoyed the story and the various tales of her life definitely were entertaining to say the least.
April 1, 2012
This is a broad you wish you had met. I know-she's not the most SENSITIVE person on the planet, and she's a bit impulsive- but she's a hell of a lot of fun, and completely, utterly fearless. She didn't die some sad-sack death in miserable penury, like so many women in fiction who make the choice to live their lives their own way- she lived a long life, full of hot guys and adventure and re-invention, at a point in history where women were encouraged NOT to show their ankles.
Add to this Bruce Seymour's obvious passion for his subject, and you have a wonderful biography. I find myself going back to it and reading chapters over again- when I need a refresher about how to be brave, in life.
Add to this Bruce Seymour's obvious passion for his subject, and you have a wonderful biography. I find myself going back to it and reading chapters over again- when I need a refresher about how to be brave, in life.
August 9, 2014
I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. Lola is a fascinating woman; I was as in awe of her as I was infuriated by her. But ultimately, the charm and intellect that won over so many when she lived won me over more than 150 years after her death. So glad that this book was recommended to me.
Read
January 15, 2008just started it. interesting person.
February 4, 2008
biography of Eliza Gilbert, the most notorious Victorian woman. she was very busy spending money, sleeping around, partying, screaming at and punching men. a woman way before her time. great fun!
April 2, 2012
Good book, never finished, I love history that pertains to where I live, however it does not hold my attention long.
August 15, 2018
This book is about an extraordinary woman who came from nothing and made herself famous
World wide. She went to Spain and learnt to dance there. Her life was full of amazing adventures,
Including knowing Ludwig 1 and being his girlfriend for years.
She travelled the world and even came to Australia during the Gold Rush with her amazing Spider dance.
A fascinating life.
World wide. She went to Spain and learnt to dance there. Her life was full of amazing adventures,
Including knowing Ludwig 1 and being his girlfriend for years.
She travelled the world and even came to Australia during the Gold Rush with her amazing Spider dance.
A fascinating life.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews