Dorothea Jordan, was an Anglo-Irish actress, as well as a courtesan.
25 Facts About Dorothea Jordan
2.
Dorothea Jordan was the long-time mistress of Prince William, Duke of Clarence, later William IV, and the mother of ten illegitimate children by him, all of whom took the surname FitzClarence.
3.
Dorothea Jordan was known professionally as Dorothea Francis and Dorothea Jordan, was informally Dora Jordan, and was commonly referred to as Mrs Jordan and Mrs FitzClarence.
4.
At the Smock Alley Theatre, under the management of Richard Daly, Dorothea Jordan began playing male roles in the company's "reversed" cast.
5.
Dorothea Jordan performed in the Yorkshire Circuit with Wilkinson's company for three years from 1782 to 1785.
6.
Dorothea Jordan was able to learn her lines quickly and seemed to have a natural talent, which made the other actresses in the company jealous.
7.
Some time later, while in York, Sarah Siddons came to visit Wilkinson and see Dora Dorothea Jordan perform in one of her popular breeches roles.
8.
Dorothea Jordan was acclaimed for her "naturalness" on stage, and called a "child of nature", a slightly derogatory term for someone who is of illegitimate birth.
9.
Play them "all" she did, though Dorothea Jordan found less success in playing women of higher social standing with some individuals believing that she lacked the "artifice and incisiveness" of other actresses who commonly played high standing female roles.
10.
Dorothea Jordan returned to Wilkinson's Circuit in York several times, as well Edinburgh, Margate, Liverpool, Bath, Bristol and Manchester.
11.
Dorothea Jordan "felt hopeful" of being accepted, but her mother regarded him as unsuitable, and Jordan returned to Dublin intent on success in the theatre.
12.
Dorothea Jordan had an affair with Richard Daly, who was manager of Dublin's Crow Street Theatre and then of Smock Alley.
13.
Dorothea Jordan then went to work for the theatre company operated by Tate Wilkinson.
14.
Dorothea Jordan appeared at Wilkinson's York Circuit theatres, including The Theatre, Leeds, where she complained of uncomfortable working conditions.
15.
In late 1786, Dorothea Jordan began an affair with Sir Richard Ford, then a police magistrate and lawyer.
16.
Dorothea Jordan moved in with him, believing he intended marriage.
17.
Dorothea Jordan left Ford when marriage was no longer possible.
18.
Dorothea Jordan's children were placed under the care of her sister Hester, who moved with them to a house in Brompton.
19.
In 1790, Dorothea Jordan became the mistress of Prince William, Duke of Clarence, the third son of King George III.
20.
Dorothea Jordan began living with him first at Clarence Lodge and later, in 1797, at Bushy House.
21.
In 1814, when her son-in-law, Thomas Alsop, became heavily in debt, Dorothea Jordan returned to the stage to help pay off that debt.
22.
Dorothea Jordan had written letters to British theatres and newspapers pleading with them to rehire her, acknowledging her prior affairs and business dealings with some of her past companions.
23.
Dorothea Jordan sold her home in 1815 and moved to Boulogne, France, assuming the alias Mrs James or Madame James or Mrs Johnson.
24.
Dorothea Jordan wrote in a letter "it is not, believe me, the feelings of pride, avarice, or the absence of those comforts I have all my life been accustomed to, that is killing me by inches; it is the loss of my only remaining comfort, the hope I used to live on from time to time, of seeing my children".
25.
Dorothea Jordan died alone on 5 July 1816 from a ruptured blood vessel caused by violent inflammation of the chest.