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Social Victorians/People/Casa de Valencia

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Also Known As

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  • Family name: Count Casa de Valencia
  • Casa Valencia
  • His Excellency Count de Casa Valencia, Ambassador to the Court of St. James
  • Señor Conde de Casa Valencia Exemo[1]:1353

Acquaintances, Friends and Enemies

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Friends

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  • a Cardinal Vaughan[2]:168

Organizations

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  • Spanish Ambassador to St. James's Court (1895–)
Black-and-white photograph of a woman richly dressed in an historical costume with stars on it, leaning on a pedastal
Lady ('Dona') Ana, Countess of Casa Valencia in costume as Nuit d'Espagne. ©National Portrait Gallery, London.

Timeline

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1897 July 2, Friday, the Countess and Ambassador Casa de Valencia attended the Duchess of Devonshire's Duchess of Devonshire's fancy-dress ball at Devonshire House.

Costume at the Duchess of Devonshire's 2 July 1897 Fancy-dress Ball

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At the Duchess of Devonshire’s 1897 Duchess of Devonshire's fancy-dress ball, Ana, Countess Casa de Valencia (at 148) sat at Table 3 in the first seating for supper. The Count (at 183) sat at Table 8 in the first seating.

Alexander Bassano's portrait of Lady ('Dona') Ana, Countess of Casa Valencia as Nuit d'Espagne in costume is photogravure #32 in the album presented to the Duchess of Devonshire and now in the National Portrait Gallery.[3] The printing on the portrait says, "The Countess of Casa Valencia as Nuit d'Espagne," with a Long S in Countess.[4]

The fact that her costume is described in French rather than Spanish seems meaningful. In 1872, Jules Massenet set Louis Gallet's poem "Nuit d'Espagne" to music.[5] The song was performed in concerts in London and Europe in the 1890s. The Globe, for example, reported on a "charming" performance in Steinway Hall on Tuesday, 25 May 1897.[6]

Demographics

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  • Nationality: Spanish

Residences

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  • 1 Grosvenor Gardens, S.W., London (1895–1897+?), site of the embassy?

Family

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  • Conde, Count Casa de Valencia ()
  • Ana, Countess Casa de Valencia ()
    • 5 children: 2 daughters and 3 sons
    • Mlle

Questions and Notes

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  1. "His Excellency, I may say, is the fourth Ambassador to our Court since the Spanish Embassy was re-established: the first was Don José Luis Albareda, the second the Marquis de Casa Laiglesia, and the third Don Cipriano del Mazo. Long years ago, when Lord Palmerston was Premier, the Count first came to London as Secretary to the Spanish Legation. Don Javier Isturiz was then Minister — an old and cautious diplomat."[2]:166
  2. "His Excellency, who married Mlle. de Osma, daughter of the Marquis de la Puente y de Soto-Major, a Grandee of Spain, and is the further of five children, two daughters and three boys, has made a delightful home in London."[2]:169
  3. The drawing-room in the apartments where the de Casa Valencias lived had portraits of the 2 daughters painted by Vaamonde.[2]:168
  4. "The Countess de Casa Valencia is a charming painter, and I saw one or two pretty examples of her skill."[2]:168

Works Cited on Costume at the Duchess of Devonshire's Ball

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  1. ↑ Royal Blue Book: Fashionable Directory and Parliamentary Guide. [number 75] London: Kelly & Co., 1897. https://books.google.com/books?id=w1AuAAAAMAAJ.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Fraser, John Foster. "The Spanish Embassy in London." The English Illustrated Magazine, No. 17: 165–170. Google Books: https://books.google.com/books?id=qqAUAAAAYAAJ.
  3. ↑ "Devonshire House Fancy Dress Ball (1897): photogravures by Walker & Boutall after various photographers." 1899. National Portrait Gallery https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait-list.php?set=515.
  4. ↑ "Lady ('Dona') Ana, Countess of Casa Valencia as Nuit d'Espagne." Diamond Jubilee Fancy Dress Ball. National Portrait Gallery https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw158384/Lady-Dona-Ana-Countess-of-Casa-Valencia-as-Nuit-dEspagne.
  5. ↑ "Nuit d'Espagne | Song Texts, Lyrics & Translations". Oxford Lieder. Retrieved 2022-01-27. https://www.oxfordlieder.co.uk/song/3354.
  6. ↑ "Yesterday's Concerts." The Globe 26 May 1897 Wednesday: 3 [of 8], Col. 2b [of 5]. British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0001652/18970526/024/0003.
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