Introduction - Asquith letters to Venetia Stanley
Prime Minister H.H. Asquith developed an intense emotional dependence on Venetia Stanley, writing her up to three times a day to share military secrets, Cabinet disputes, and his personal anxieties during the early Great War [asquith_letters_full.txt, 144, 227]. He viewed her as his 'pole-star' and 'life-buoy,' valuing her judgment above his colleagues', and often wrote to her while presiding over Cabinet meetings [asquith_letters_full.txt, 227, 269]. This obsessive correspondence came to a devastating halt in May 1915 when Venetia announced her engagement to Edwin Montagu, leaving Asquith heartbroken during a major political crisis.
Introduction: The Asquith-Stanley Letters
An overview of the intimate correspondence between Prime Minister H.H. Asquith and Venetia Stanley, revealing the personal and political dynamics of early 20th-century Britain.
Chapter Timeline
Key events in chronological order
The period Asquith refers to as when 'the scales dropped' from his eyes regarding his feelings for Venetia
Asquith calculates he has written Venetia not less than 170 letters since the previous December
Britain declares war; Asquith writes to Venetia describing the resignations of Morley and Burns
Asquith writes to Venetia describing a dramatic Cabinet scene where he threatened to resign to quell a dispute between Lloyd George and McKenna
Venetia writes to Asquith announcing her decision to marry Edwin Montagu
Asquith replies to Venetia, 'As you know well, this breaks my heart,' marking the effective end of the correspondence
Venetia Stanley marries Edwin Montagu
Character Perspectives(How each character saw that)
H.H. Asquith
He viewed the correspondence as the 'blood of life' and Venetia as his 'pole-star' and 'life-buoy' without whom he could not function [asquith_letters_full.txt, 227]. He believed he had written to her with more intimacy than to any other human being and valued her judgment above his Cabinet colleagues.
Venetia Stanley
he initially found the attention flattering but eventually felt the relationship was a heavy burden; she sought to escape the 'horror of England' and the intensity of Asquith's demands by working in a hospital and eventually marrying Montagu.
Margot Asquith
She felt 'wounded, bewildered & humiliated' by the relationship, suspecting Venetia had ousted her, and resented that Asquith shared secrets with Venetia that he did not share with her [asquith_letters_full.txt, 320]. However, she later tried to maintain a facade of friendship, though she privately thought Venetia 'not candid'
Edwin Montagu
He was desperate to marry Venetia and jealous of the Prime Minister's hold on her, writing that he could not 'share' her with Asquith [asquith_letters_full.txt, 292]. He urged Venetia to be brave and enter the 'fold' of Judaism to make their marriage possible.
Violet Asquith
She was initially Venetia's close friend but reacted with 'idiotic indignation' to the marriage engagement, feeling that Venetia had abandoned her father at a crucial moment.
Fun Fact
Asquith often wrote these highly secretive love letters while actually sitting at the Cabinet table during meetings; on one occasion in March 1915, he wrote to Venetia describing a 'royal row' between Kitchener and Lloyd George while the argument was happening in front of him.
Sources
- • Asquith Letters Full
- • The Asquiths Book
- • Venetia & Edwin Letters
- • Naomi Levine
- • Margot Asquith's Great War Diary
- • Churchill Cabinet Papers (1914–1915)